February 25 , 2005

Kristen Suatoni

GENEVA, N.Y.—Top-seeded William Smith College advanced to the championship game of the Liberty League Women’s Basketball Tournament with a 76-50 win over No. 4 Hamilton College in Bristol Gym tonight. The Herons held the Continentals to just 15.5 percent shooting from the floor, the lowest by a William Smith opponent this season.

The Herons (17-7) led by seven at halftime, 34-27, and turned up the defensive intensity after the intermission, limiting the Continentals (15-10) to just four second half field goals on 44 attempts (.091), including an 0-for-16 showing from behind the three-point arc.

On the other end of the floor, William Smith scored the first nine points of second stanza and broke open the game with a 22-8 run. The Herons dominated the low post, outscoring Hamilton 44-12 in the paint, while grabbing a 52-49 advantage on the boards. First-year Kristen Suatoni (Liverpool/Liverpool, N.Y.) collected a game-high 12 caroms for the victors, while Hamilton first-year Pumla Sathula (St. Anne’s-Bellfield School/Charlottesville, Va.) matched that total and scored 10 points.

Liberty League Rookie of the Year Marisa Vespa (Immaculate Heart/Watertown, N.Y.) scored a game-high 12 points for William Smith, while seniors Ivy Parker (Corcoran/Syracuse, N.Y.) and Tara Brisson (Bishop Grimes/Liverpool, N.Y.) each added 10. Brisson also tallied eight rebounds and six assists.

Two other Continentals reached double digits in scoring. Junior guard Erin Daugherty (Chatham/Chatham, N.J.) and senior guard Tricia Czeski (Amsterdam/Amsterdam, N.Y.) both totaled 10 points, while Czeski also grabbed 10 boards.

William Smith will face St. Lawrence University, at 2 p.m., on Feb. 26, in the Liberty League Championship game. The winner will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. The teams split their two regular season meetings, with the road team emerging victorious.

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