Women's Basketball

Binghamton Provides Lone Upset in Jersey Mikes Women's #AEPlayoffs Quarterfinals

BOSTON -  #5 Binghamton provided the only upset of the evening, taking down #4 Bryant, while Maine, UAlbany and Vermont all came away victorious in the 2024 Jersey Mike’s Women’s #AEPlayoffs on Friday evening.
 
Binghamton’s Denai Bowman was all over the court as she brought the Bearcats to the semifinals for the first time since 2020 with the 56-51 win over the fourth seeded Bryant Bulldogs. They will travel to battle top seed Maine, who edge UMass Lowell 49-42, advancing the semifinals for a 10th straight season. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. on Monday evening.
 
#2 UAlbany struggled in the first half but pulled away in the second from #7 NJIT, and they will welcome #3 Vermont, the defending conference champion, who blew past UMBC 54-41 with a strong second half. The contest is set to begin on Monday at 7 p.m.

For full playoff coverage, including box scores, highlights, photos and more, visit #AEPlayoffs Central.
 

#1 Maine 49, #8 UMass Lowell 43
  • UMass Lowell jumped out to a 5-0 lead and led 11-7, before Maine came back to tie it 11-11 at the end of the first.
  • Neither team could break away in the second as each scored nine points.
  • The Black Bears scored the final four points of the third to take a three-point lead and they pushed it as high as seven in the final ten minutes on the way to victory.
  • Adrianna Smith was all over the court for Maine with 14 points, ten assists and eight rebounds, while Caroline Bornemann came through with 12 points and nine rebounds.
  • The Black Bears shot 30.9 percent from the floor while UMass Lowell shot 41.3 percent overall.
 
#2 UAlbany 57, #7 NJIT 42
  • UAlbany held NJIT scoreless for the first seven minutes, but only led NJIT 9-7 at the end of the first.
  • The Highlanders tied it up in the second and captured a 14-12 lead on a three midway through the period. However, the Great Danes ended the quarter on a 14-1 run to take control 26-15.
  • NJIT managed to close the gap to just eight points late in the third, but UAlbany went on another run to extend their lead as high as 23 points before finishing with the 15-point victory.
  • Kayla Cooper led a balanced scoring attack with 14 points, five rebounds and three steals while Meghan Huerter had ten points off the bench.
  • Lyzi Litwinko led NJIT with 13 points while Marissa Gingrich added ten points and five boards.
 

#3 Vermont 54, #6 UMBC 41
  • The Catamounts jumped out to a 14-9 lead in the first quarter and then extended it in the second to grab a 26-14 advantage at the half.
  • UMBC came out firing and cut the deficit to just six points with four minutes left in the period, however, five straight by UVM to conclude the quarter made it a 39-28 contest through three.
  • The Retrievers pulled within seven in the final quarter before the Catamounts broke it open for a double-digit lead again.
  • Emma Utterback was all over the court with 21 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Anna Olson was solid with seven points, eight rebounds and three assists.
  • Vermont shot 48.9 percent while UMBC shot 33.3 percent. Anna Blount had a team-high 15 points for the Retrievers.
 
 
#5 Binghamton 56, #4 Bryant 51
  • The Bearcats trailed Bryant 14-13 after the first quarter, but outscored the Bulldogs 14-6 in the second period to grab a 27-20 lead.
  • Binghamton posted a 37-34 advantage through three quarters, but Bryant stormed back to tie the contest 42-42 in the fourth.
  • The Bearcats answered with five straight points and then got a dagger three by Jadyn Weltz with 43 seconds left for the 50-45 lead and they held on for the victory.
  • Bowman was dominant with 24 points, the most in an #AEPlayoffs game for a Bearcat since 2007. She added five rebounds and four assists for good measure.
  • Silvia Gonzalez led Bryant with 12 points, six rebounds and two blocks as Bryant’s season came to an end with a 15-15 record.
 
ABOUT AMERICA EAST
Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference its social media channels, @AmericaEast. 
 
- America East Conference – Where Champions Rise -