Mariners Regain Control, Finish Off Gophers

Mariners Regain Control, Finish Off Gophers

Smith Goes 12-of-13 on Free Throws, Finishes with 24 Points

January 9, 2009

KINGS POINT, N.Y. – It took Goucher less than eight minutes to fall into a 16-4 hole against Merchant Marine tonight and then only about half that amount of time to nearly erase that entire 12-point deficit with a 15-4 run midway through the first half. But by halftime, the Mariners had regained control, building their lead back up to nine points, and they were well on their way to a convincing 82-56 Landmark Conference victory.

The 15-4 spurt that got the Gophers (4-7, 0-2 Landmark) back in the game featured eight points by Amber Smith (Baltimore, Md./Institute of Notre Dame) and four from Elizabeth von Ende (Leawood, Kan./American Hebrew Academy), plus a three-point basket by Leia Roberts-Brown (Capitol Heights, Md./Archbishop Carroll). Smith, who was 6-for-7 from the field and missed only one of her 13 free-throw attempts, finished with a game-high 24 points.

Smith's lay-up with 8:03 remaining in the opening period got the Gophers to within 20-19, but when Merchant Marine's Kristen Hetsko drained a three-point at the buzzer ending the first half, the Mariners' lead had grown back to nine points at 40-31.

Leading 52-40 with 13:52 left to play, the Mariners (6-5, 1-1 Landmark) put the game out of reach when they outscored the Gophers, 18-1, over a span of 7:12 to pull ahead 72-43.

In addition to her 24 points, Smith supplied the Gophers with eight rebounds. The senior forward is the leading rebounder in the Landmark Conference, averaging 9.1 per contest.

The top scorer for Merchant Marine was Rebecca Grimes, who came off the bench to contribute 20 points to the victory.