Megan PellegrinoThe Lady Cavaliers triumphed over Neumann winning 74-61 on Saturday, Feb. 14.
For the first time since 1997, the Lady Cavs have clinched the top seed in the Colonial States Athletic Conference.
In her first season with the team, Bernadette Laukaitis kept the women true to their winning ways.
“The main drive for the team was to clinch first place in the CSAC,” Deana DiAmico, junior history major, said.
“We knew going into the game that if we won we would clinch the number one seed for playoffs. It was great because it gave us something extra to work for,” Nikki Duggan, senior English and communication major, said.
DiAmico, Brittany McLeod, senior communication major, and Kate Ryan, senior exercise science and health promotion major, kept the team rolling during the first half. By halftime, DiAmico and Ryan kept the team in a two-point difference trailing Neumann 28-26.
“We just talked about going out and playing this game just like any other game,” DiAmico said. “But this game had a lot behind it. We knew that if we were to come out with a win, we would be first place in the CSAC.”
That two point difference didn’t stop the Lady Cavs from taking the win.
The team shot at 60 percent from the field in the second half. After starting the second half with a 47-34 lead, the Lady Cavs never went back to being behind on the scoreboard.
“It was a great team win, everyone played well,” Duggan said. “Now we can play the rest of our regular season with no pressure because we have a secured number one spot.”
Forcing 20 turnovers, the Lady Cavs outscored the Neumann Knights 24-10 all because of the other teams mistakes.
Now that the women have the top seed in the division, it is time for them to get ready for the playoffs. The mental preparation is starting to set in.
“We will just need to stay focused on our main goal, which is to win the CSAC championship on our home court,” DiAmico said. “We have to go out and play every game as if it is our championship game. Come out and support us in the playoffs and spread the word.”
Before they head into the playoffs, they first had to take on Richard Stockton College in New Jersey on Monday, Feb. 16.
The game at Stockton was a confident game for the Lady Cavs. With not a lot of pressure, the women still worked extra hard for another win under their belt.
Kate Walck, junior psychology major, scored 12 points for the team.
DiAmico put 11 points on the board for the Lady Cavs.
By halftime, the Lady Cavs were leading 38-20 and they weren’t slowing down.
The Lady Cavs led 8-0 before Stockton put their first points on the board in the second half. They reached the 20-win streak for the eighth time since the 1980-81 season.
The Lady Cavs only have one more regular season game against Immaculata University at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 19.
“We were confident going into Monday night’s game. We just found out that we are ranked sixth in the region which is exciting,” Duggan said. “It’s also always exciting playing non-conference teams because it gives us a chance to make a statement to more people of how strong of a team we are.”
