Last Second Basket Lifts Women’s Basketball to 53-52 Win Over Salem
Framingham, Mass. – Sophomore forward Kia Minor (Edgartown, Mass.) hit freshman guard Cassie Liston (Stoneham, Mass.) cutting down the right side and Liston sank a layup with 10.9 seconds remaining to propel the Framingham State University women's basketball team to a come from behind 53-52 win over Salem State tonight in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) women's basketball action.
With the win the Rams conclude the regular season at 12-13 overall and 4-8 in the MASCAC, while the Vikings slip to 3-21 overall and 0-11 in conference with the loss.
In a back-and-forth first half that saw four ties and seven lead changes, the Vikings took the game's largest lead – six points - on three pointers from Breanna Comeau (Amesbury, Mass.) and Alexandra Moutsoulas (Peabody, Mass.) in the final 1:07 of the first half.
The Vikings extended their lead to 13 points (38-25) with a 12-5 run to start the second half. The Rams started the second half 0-for-10 from the floor and were without a second half field goal until sophomore Kay Smith (Boston, Mass.) converted a 3-point play with 12:30 left in the game.
Smith's bucket sparked the Rams comeback as they went on a 13-6 run over the next five minutes to pull within three at 44-41.
The Rams tied the game and took their first lead of the half (51-50) on a pair of Kristen Hoffman (Foxboro, Mass.) free throws with 2:07 remaining. Salem took the lead back on a pair of Amy Barry (Manchester, NH) freebies with 45.7 second left in the game.
The Rams turned the ball over on their next possession giving the Vikings the ball with 36.6 on the clock. FSU was forced to foul and Salem State missed the free throw but freshman Lisa Aylward (Everett, Mass.) corralled the rebound for the Vikings forcing the Rams to foul again with 19.3 remaining. The Vikings missed both free throws and Minor grabbed the rebound for the Rams pushing the ball up the floor and hitting Liston in stride for the game-winning drive.
Salem State had a chance to win the game after a pair of time outs gave them possession in the front court on the left wing with 6.5 seconds on the clock. Coming out of the second timeout Salem executed their set and Comeau came free on a back screen and appeared to have a free shot, but Framingham's Emily Clark (Melrose, Mass.) slid in from the weak side and blocked Comeau's shot to preserve the one point win for the Rams.
Hoffman led all scorers with a game-high 18 points including a perfect 10-of-10 from the line, while Minor was the only other Ram to record double figures with 14 points to go along with eight boards and three assists. Smith finished the game with eight points, while Clark filled the stat sheet with six points, eight boards and five blocks.
Barry was the lone Viking to record double figures with 15 points and seven boards, while Kristen Federico (Peabody, Mass.), Moutsoulas, and Madeleine Park (Blue Hill, ME) finished with seven points apiece.
The Rams return to action next Tuesday in the opening round of the MASCAC Women's Basketball Championship Tournament with their opponent and the location of the game to be determined on Saturday after the remaining conference games are played, while the Vikings close their season on Saturday at 4 p.m. as they host Worcester State.