Holy Cross women's basketball team ready to defend title as Patriot League play begins
The defending regular-season Patriot League champion Holy Cross women’s basketball team opens PL play Friday at Bucknell.
Despite a 30-point loss to Vermont last week in their final game before Christmas break, the Crusaders had a solid non-conference slate while going 8-3, playing good defense, and witnessing the emergence of sophomore forward Lindsay Berger.
HC rode a five-game winning streak into the game against UVM at the Hart Center, but the Catamounts were in control for all 40 minutes of their 64-34 victory.
Vermont was just the third team to score more than 60 points against the Crusaders this year, and the 34 points was a season-low for HC.
“I hope looking back at it a month or two from now, we can say, ‘That Vermont game was a true wake-up call to really refocus and come back and learn from,’” HC coach Maureen Magarity said.
The Crusaders’ other two losses were to Marquette (Big East) and Boston College (ACC).
Berger averaged just 6.8 minutes in 17 games off the bench last year, but she immediately solidified her spot in the starting lineup this season. She leads the Crusaders in rebounding (7.5 rpg) and is tied with junior forward Janelle Allen for second in scoring (11 ppg). Junior guard Bronagh Power-Cassidy (11.3 ppg) also averages in double figures.
Junior guard Cara McCormack, who missed the first seven games with a wrist injury, recently returned to action, and she will give HC depth and experience in the backcourt.
The 2021-22 regular-season PL championship was the first for Holy Cross in 17 years.
The Crusaders lead the Patriot League in scoring defense and field goal percentage defense, and are second in three-point field goal percentage defense. Turnovers – HC averages 16.3 per game – have been a concern, and Magarity wants to see her team play better at home.
The setback to Vermont is HC’s only loss at the Hart Center this year, but the Crusaders needed a dominant fourth quarter to beat Stonehill, rallied from an 11-point second-quarter deficit in a win over Connecticut College, and overcame 24 turnovers to take down New Hampshire, all at home.
“In conference play,” Magarity said, “you have to play well at home.”
During last year’s 20-win campaign, HC lost only one regular-season league game at the Hart Center.
The Crusaders host Navy in their PL home opener at 12:30 Jan. 2.
Head of the Class
South Carolina senior Aliyah Boston, the former Worcester Academy star, needed just 13 minutes to score 11 points and pull down 10 rebounds for her 68th career double-double in last week’s dominant win over Coastal Carolina. Boston is just four double-doubles away from tying South Carolina’s all-time mark.
Assumption senior forward Monica Spain averaged 11 points and 10 rebounds to lead the undefeated Greyhounds to three wins. At 11-0, Assumption is off to its best start in program history. The Greyhounds made their 2022-23 season debut No. 23 in the WBCA NCAA Division 2 Top 25 coaches poll.
Southern Connecticut State sophomore guard Marty Silvera of Worcester averaged 15.5 points, 4.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds to lead the Owls to wins over Holy Family and Bloomfield.
Holy Cross junior guard Joe Octave averaged 18 points on 54% shooting and 3.5 rebounds in losses to New Hampshire and Sacred Heart.
—Contact Jennifer Toland at jennifer.toland@telegram.com. Follow her on Twitter @JenTolandTG.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Holy Cross women's basketball team ready for Patriot League slate
