BOX SCORE
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. Heta Korpivaara (Espoo, Finland) scored 14 points to lead the Seton Hall women’s basketball team to a 60-39 rout of Dartmouth in the first round of the WNIT. The Pirates (19-11) used a stifling defensive effort in the first half, in which they limited the Big Green (15-14) to four field goals and 11 points, to cruise to the victory. SHU will travel to Hofstra for a second round game on Saturday, currently scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
After a sluggish start to the game, a pair of Jadis Rhodin (Lakehurst, N.J.) three-pointers pushed SHU out to a 10-6 lead with 12:26 to play in the first half. Dartmouth could muster virtually no offense against the Pirates, going nine minutes and nine seconds without a point. Six different players scored for the Hall during an 18-0 run that resulted in a 25-6 lead with 3:51 to play before halftime.
Ashley Taylor finally ended the Dartmouth drought with a backdoor lay-up, but SHU kept rolling as a Brittney Messina (Massapequa, N.Y.) fallaway jumper at the buzzer gave the Pirates a 30-11 lead at the break. The Big Green’s first half field goal and point totals were the lowest given up in a half this season by the Hall.
Dartmouth managed to get within 16 points twice in the second half but could never make a serious run. With the Pirates leading 45-27, Korpivaara drilled a three, Noteisha Womack (Ft. Washington, Md scored on the inside, and Amber Harris (Washington, Pa.) hit a jumper to push the advantage to 23 as SHU coasted to the win.
SHU won for the first time in the postseason since a 61-56 overtime win over George Mason in the first round of the 2004 WNIT.
Womack posted a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double, while Ela Mukosiej (Bilystok, Poland) scored 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Messina, making her first start of the season, had six points, seven rebounds, and four assists from the point guard position. The Pirates hit a season-high six three-pointers as a team, with Korpivaara and Rhodin nailing two each. Dartmouth's 39 points were the fewest allowed by the Hall since a 57-36 win over Saint Joseph's on Dec. 5, 2004.
Taylor, the Ivy League Player of the Year, had 17 points and 10 rebounds for Dartmouth.
Seton Hall will take on Hofstra in Hempstead, N.Y. for the right to move on to the third round. The Pride (24-7) received a first round bye.
