USP DEFEATS BLOOMFIELD IN CACC SEMIFINALS
USP DEFEATS BLOOMFIELD IN CACC SEMIFINALS
March 4, 2004
Courtesy of Matt McLagan Caldwell Sports Information
CALDWELL, N.J. – Forward Leah Shumoski (Broomall, PA) scored a game-high 28 points to lead the University of Sciences women’s basketball team to a 78-60 victory over Bloomfield College in the first semifinal of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Tournament Friday afternoon at Caldwell College. The win allows the third-seeded Devils (21-8) to defend their CACC Tournament title from a year ago in tomorrow’s final against either Holy Family or N.J.I.T. The second-seeded Deacons end their season with a record of 21-8.
USP began the game with a 19-5 run, including seven points from Stephanie Watson (Warminster, PA) and six from Shelby Rance (Bloomsburg, PA). Bloomfield battled back to within 23-15 with 12:28 left in the half, but the Devils used strong shooting to lead by as many as 20 before heading into the break with a 46-29 lead. USP shot 60.7 percent from the field in the first half, compared to 31.6 percent for the Deacons.
With the Devils leading 54-33 with 15:26 remaining, Bloomfield made a push to get back into the game with a 14-4 run sparked by five points from forward Keir Dargon (Newark, NJ) and four from guard Taquila Hendry (Newark, NJ). But that’s as close as the Deacons would get, as USP hit six straight free throws to increase the lead to 66-49 and effectively put the game out of reach. The Devils enjoyed a 29-14 advantage in free throw attempts, making 24 (82.8 percent).
With her performance today, Shumoski became the Devils’ all-time leading scorer with 1,373 career points. She also grabbed a team-best eight rebounds. Rance had 21 points and went a perfect 10-of-10 from the line, while Watson had 15 points and five assists. Dargon finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds for Bloomfield in the loss.
Saturday’s CACC Tournament championship game will take place at 5:30 p.m. in the Newman Center on the campus of Caldwell College.