CANTON, N.Y. – The Union College women's basketball team finished the regular season on an eight-game winning streak to clinch its first Liberty League regular-season title since 2008-09 and only the third 20-win season in program history with a 63-50 victory over St. Lawrence University in Saturday's regular-season finale at Ronald T. Burkman Gymnasium.
Union finishes the regular season with a record of 20-5 (16-2 Liberty League) and tied for first place in the conference standings with Rochester Institute of Technology, but the Garnet Chargers earn the tiebreaker thanks to their season sweep of the Tigers. As a result, Union earns the right to host all of its Liberty League Tournament games at Viniar Athletic Center, beginning on Friday with the conference semifinals.
The team's 20 victories already this season are third-most in a season in program history, trailing only the 2003-04 (24 wins) and 2002-03 (22 wins) squads on the program's all-time ledger. The 2003-04 squad is also one of two others – along with the 2008-09 team – to finish the regular season atop the conference standings.
Seniors
Grace Ardito and
Jelena Perovic scored a game-high 14 points each to lead the Garnet Chargers, with Ardito hitting 6-of-8 shots from the field and Perovic connecting on 7-of-13 attempts. Classmate
Grace Ceseretti also reached double figures with 11 points to go with five boards and three assists, and sophomore
Olivia Cunningham just missed a double-double with nine points, a team-leading 12 caroms and four assists.
As a team, Union shot 45.8 percent (27 of 59) from the field and also limited St. Lawrence (16-9, 11-7 Liberty League) to just 26.9 percent (18 of 67) shooting overall and just 4-of-22 from beyond the arc. The visitors also dominated in the paint, outscoring SLU 48-18 close to the hoop.
Union got baskets from Perovic and senior
Kate Peek to start the game and the Garnet Chargers never trailed, with the Saints only managing to tie the score on two occasions. With the game tied at eight, Ceseretti had seven points as part of a 10-0 run that gave the visitors their first double-digit advantage of the afternoon late in the first period. The Saints could never get back within a possession throughout the second stanza despite several pushes, as Union seemingly had an answer at every turn. The visitors shot 50.0 percent (7 of 14) in the second stanza to head into the locker rooms up 33-26.
After a SLU opened the third period with a three-pointer, Union responded with an 11-2 run – led by eight points from Ardito – to open up a 44-31 lead with 2:23 left in the frame. A pair of free throws later by first-year
Ryley Tate-Padian gave Union a 14-point edge (46-32) after 30 minutes.
St. Lawrence finally found its stroke in the fourth quarter, shooting at 53 percent from the field, but Union matched that percentage to cruise its way home. A 10-2 run midway through the period gave Union its largest lead of the day at 63-43 after an Ardito layup with 3:11 on the clock, while the Saints finished with seven straight points to make the final score look a little closer.
Union will await the winner of Tuesday's first-round matchup between fourth-seeded St. Lawrence and fifth-seeded Vassar College in the semifinal round on Friday evening. Check UnionAthletics.com early next week for game information and a full tournament preview.
