Jefferson WBB Advances to East Region Final for Second-Straight Year
WALTHAM, Mass. (March 16, 2024) -- Cassie Murphy netted 15 points on 9-of-15 shooting and Sam Yencha logged a double-double with 11 points and 17 rebounds to spark No. 4 Thomas Jefferson University to a convincing 68-50 win over top seed and host school Bentley University in the semifinals of the 2024 NCAA Division II East Region Tournament on Saturday night at the Dana Center in Waltham, Mass.
Jefferson improved to 32-1 and will now face Daemen University (#6 seed) in Monday night's East Region Final at the Dana Center. It marks the second time in as many seasons the Rams earned a trip to the regional final and Sweet 16. A win on Monday night would send Jefferson to the Elite Eight, which would mark the furthest a women's basketball program has advanced in CACC history.
Morgan Robinson added 17 points while Haley Meinel chipped in with 15. For the second night in a row the Rams nearly shot 50 percent from the field as they knocked down 29-of-59 attempts for a 49-percent clip.
Ciara Norman came off the bench to lead Bentley with 13 points as she was the lone double-figure scorer for the Falcons.
Unlike Friday night, Saturday's game was all Jefferson from the get-go. The Rams led by as many as 23 points and held the lead the entire 40 minutes. Friday night saw Jefferson go through 10 ties and 14 lead changes before prevailing, 91-89, over Southern New Hampshire University in the regional quarterfinal. The Rams limited Bentley to just 33-percent shooting and forced the Falcons into 17 turnovers. Jefferson is averaging 17.5 forced turnovers in the first two games of the regional.
Jefferson and Daemen will be meeting in the NCAA Tournament for the third-straight season..
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
An 8-0 run midway through the first quarter staked Jefferson to its dominant showing as the Rams opened up an 11-2 lead. Yencha led the way with five points during the run. Bentley stemmed the tide, briefly, with a basket, but then Jefferson countered with 13-consecutive points to take a commanding 24-4 lead. Murphy had five points during the surge as she sparked it with a bucket and then capped it with a three-point play.
Final Three Quarters
Jefferson never let its lead slip below double-digits after the closing surge in the opening stanza. The Rams shot 57 percent from the field (8-of-14) in the third quarter and held the Falcons to just 4-of-16 shooting. Jefferson held a 54-33 lead heading into the fourth. If Bentley wanted to use the three-ball to get back into the game, it didn't work as Jefferson's perimeter defense stifled the Falcons to just a 2-of-7 effort from long range.
ABOUT THE CACC
The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference is an NCAA Division II Conference composed of 12 institutions in Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. The member institutions are Bloomfield College, University of Bridgeport, Caldwell University, Chestnut Hill College, Dominican (N.Y.) University, Felician University, Georgian Court University, Goldey-Beacom College, Holy Family University, Post University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Wilmington University.