SCRANTON — From the time it lost in the Elite Eight last season to Wisconsin-Stout, the University of Scranton women’s basketball team made it its mission this season to get back there and beyond.
Mission accomplished.
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Four players scored in double figures as the Lady Royals downed Concordia-Moorhead, 67-42, in the NCAA Division III Elite Eight on Saturday night at the John Long Center.
Kaci Kranson scored 15 points, Katie Gorski added 13 points, Meghan Lamanna had 11 and Kaeli Romanowski totaled 10 points, nine rebounds, five steals and four assists as the Lady Royals (31-0) advanced to the Final Four for the 11th time. They will face New York University (29-0) in the semifinals Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at Roanoke College’s Cregger Center in Salem, Virginia. Game time is to be announced.
NYU defeated Wisconsin-La Crosse in its quarterfinal Saturday, 72-47, at home. The Violets are two-time defending Division III champs and have won 91 consecutive games, which is the second-longest in NCAA basketball history, men’s or women’s.
Also making the Final Four are Denison University and Wisconsin-Oshkosh and will meet in the first semifinal Thursday at 5 p.m. Denison (28-2) advanced by handing Washington & Lee its first loss, 77-64, while Wisconsin-Oshkosh (28-3) knocked off the University of Chicago, 73-56.
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Maya Metcalf, a Division II transfer, led Concordia-Moorhead (26-5) with 17 points.
“We’ve been knocking on the door that past couple of years and to see them perform the way they did tonight was just incredible,” Scranton coach Ben O’Brien said. “They faced some adversity throughout and didn’t bat an eye, just kept on pushing forward. They’ve been doing that all season. It was a total team effort, offensively and defensively.
“It’s unbelievable to be saying we’re going to the Final Four. It’s sort of surreal at this point. But they’ve worked incredibly hard to make it happen. They’ve been determined to do it since our first practice.”
As usual, it was Scranton’s defense that paved the way, particularly late in the third quarter and into the fourth.
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A 3-pointer by Kranson capped a 7-0 start to the third and gave the Lady Royals a 45-21 lead. But Concordia-Moorhead used its full-court pressure and ability to get to the foul line to cut into the deficit. The Cobbers went 10 for 10 on free throws during a 14-4 run that pulled them within 49-35 with one minute remaining in the quarter.
But the Lady Royals defense responded, forcing Concordia-Moorhead to commit eight turnovers and holding it to three field goals over the final 11 minutes to seal the victory.
“They’re one of the best defensive teams in the country,” Cobbers head coach Kim Wagers said. “We just kept trying to throw punches, not literally, kept competing. But they bring a ton of pressure and cause a lot of turnovers and are very good on the boards. We knew that going in. We were just trying to get ways find ways to get touches to our post players on the block and get our guards free with some ball screens. But they did a tremendous job all night, especially in that fourth quarter.”
Leading after three quarters, 51-35, Lamanna opened the fourth with a layup. Genevieve Gruba just beat the shot clock to score for the Cobbers, but Kranson hit two free throws and Romanowski nailed a 3-pointer to give Scranton a 58-37 lead with 6:52 remaining.
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“Our motto this year has been togetherness and tenacity,” Romanowski said. “We want to put relentless pressure on defense because that fuels our offense. Things weren’t necessarily going our way, so we knew we had to lock in, the job wasn’t over yet. We had to dig in, get a few stops and then offense will come from that. They were creating a little bit of chaos, but we were able to slow up relax and figure out what we wanted to do instead of playing at their level.”
Lamanna and Romanowski hit one foul shot each. Metcalf hit a basket for Concordia-Moorhead. But senior Jenna Sloan, who didn’t have a 3-pointer all season and attempted only five, found herself open on the right wing and hit a three that made it 63-39 with 2:21 left. When the ball swished through the net, the Long Center crowd erupted, sensing that the Lady Royals were well on their way to the Final Four.
Scranton never trailed. It scored the game’s first six points, led after one quarter, 16-8, then increased its advantage by opening the second quarter with a 15-4 run, sparked by Gorski.
After she and Kaia Gack traded baskets, Gorski scored off an assist from Sloan, then turned a steal into a layup to make it 24-10 with 7:37 left in the second. Olivia Hanson scored for the Cobbers, Gorski hit a 3-pointer. Sophia Talutto sank a stepback jumper before Gorski capped the run with a basket in the lane to give the Lady Royals a 31-12 lead with 3:35 left. They led at halftime, 38-21.
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With 11 seconds remaining in the game, O’Brien substituted for his three seniors — Kranson, Romanowski and Sloan — enabling them to get one final standing ovation from the home crowd.
“I didn’t realize until after the game that it’s our final time playing at the John Long Center,” Kranson said. “It’s a little bittersweet, but it’s nice that we got the win and are going to Virginia now. As a team, we just worked so hard each and every day, every girl pushing each other, because we knew we wanted to make it farther than the Elite Eight. But the job’s not finished. We want that national championship now.”
