Four players scored in double figures as the Chestnut Hill college women's Basketball team won their fifth consecutive game, defeating regionally ranked Dominican university 68-51 Saturday afternoon at Sorgenti Arena.
The Griffins improve to 10-6 overall and 5-2 in Central Atlantic collegiate conference games. The Chargers, ranked #10 in the most recent D2SIDA East region media poll, fall to 11-7 and 6-2 in league play.
Chestnut Hill produced a solid shooting effort while also turning up the defense in holding Dominican to 18 points below their average for the season. The Griffins shot 46.2% for the game, the best effort since their opening game of the season vs. Queens in November. CHC also made 50% of their three point shots (a season best).
Morgan Orloski connected on all three of her three-point attempts and led the team with 13 points (4-5 FG).
Leah Miller and
Siobhan Boylan added 11 points apiece while
Emily Chmiel chipped in ten and led the team with six rebounds and two blocks. Miller added five rebounds while
Kaitlyn Carter,
Abbey Spratt and Boylan had four apiece. Spratt led all players with seven assists.
A low scoring back and forth first quarter saw the Chargers hold a 13-9 lead after one period. DU still led by four when two straight layups from Chmiel tied the game at 18-18 midway through the second quarter starting what would be a 15-5 uprising from the Griffins to head into the locker room up by eight 31-23 at halftime. Miller the final seven points of the run, all in the final 69 seconds of the quarter.
The Griffins continued to expand their lead in the second half, with Orloski's three-ball opening the scoring in the third quarter and giving CHC a double digit lead 34-23. Another Orloski three-pointer followed and the Griffins were quickly up by 14, 37-23. CHC's lead remained in double digits the rest of the quarter with the chargers only coming as close as 11 before heading into the final period up 48-34.
Another big run by the Griffins kicked off the fourth quarter as they outscored the Chargers 13-4 in the first 4:49 to take biggest lead 61-38 with 5:11 left following a Miller layup. The Chargers would come no closer than 14 points the rest of the way with
Bri Rider's three-point bucket in the final 30 seconds rounding out the scoring.
Tanasha Mills was the lone Chargers player in double figures, scoring a game-high 19 points. Alexis Suarez had a game high seven rebounds.
For the game, the Griffins held the Chargers under 30% shooting for the first three quarters with DU making 53% of their shots in the fourth to finish the game shooting 32.8%. The game marked the fifth consecutive game and the eighth time this season that Chestnut Hill has held an opponent under 35% shooting for the game. CHC also limited the Chargers to just two three-point baskets while making eight of their own (a 24-6 advantage from beyond the arc).
The Griffins shot 85.7% from the free throw line, their second highest single game percentage this CHC held a 39-32 edge in rebounding season (8-9 vs. LeMoyne 88.9%) and the CHC bench outscored DU 22-15.
The women's basketball team returns to action on Tuesday, January 17, 2022 when they travel to face Georgian Court University for a CACC South Division clash. Tipoff is at 6:00 p.m.
