CHESTERTOWN — Somehow, Washington defeated McDaniel in the opening round of the Centennial Conference women’s basketball tournament here on Tuesday night, despite being O-fer over the final 4 minutes and 27 seconds.
The final score was 45-40, with neither team scoring after McDaniel’s Elaina Beckett hit a jump shot with 2:52 to play.
After that, the No. 5-seeded Green Terror (17-9) went 0-of-5 from the floor, including a pair of missed 3-pointers, while the No. 4-seeded Shore ladies went 0-of-6 from the free-throw line and 0-2 from the floor.
Washington took a 45-37 lead on Kiersten Rose’s layup with 4:27 to go, and then went ice cold.
Rose’s layup was the locals’ only made field goal — in eight attempts — in the fourth quarter.
They stretched a seven-point halftime lead to as many as 13 points in the third quarter, and carried what appeared to be a comfortable 40-28 lead into the final frame.
McDaniel closed with a 12-5 run, but was not able to come all the way back.
Washington avenged a 51-43 loss in Westminster on Feb. 5.
WC improved to 17-9, tying the program record for wins established by the 2021-22 team that finished 17-10.
Seniors Karry Kelliher (five assists) and Rose (10 rebounds) had 12 and 10 points, respectively, for the Shore ladies.
Juniors Kaitlyn Boggs (eight rebounds) contributed nine points, Abby Meredith added eight points and Emma Robinson grabbed 10 rebounds.
McDaniel’s Beckett led all players with 15 points — pushing her career total to 976 — and 11 rebounds. She put up her third double-double in the last four games.
Beckett scored eight points in a 9-2 run that cut the deficit to 45-40 with just under three minutes to play.
The Green Terror were making their first appearance in the conference tournament since 2016.
Meantime, coach Alisha Mosley and her Shore ladies are playing in their fourth straight conference tournament. They’re advancing for the third time.
Washington moves on to the semifinals on Friday at No. 2 seed Gettysburg (23-2), the three-time defending conference champion. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.
No. 6 seed Dickinson upset No. 3 seed Ursinus in Tuesday night’s other opening-round game, 71-57, and will travel to top seed Johns Hopkins (21-3) on Friday.
This is the second straight semifinal for the Red Devils (14-12), who raced out to a 21-5 lead after one quarter at Ursinus. They received a career-high 24 points from senior Jenna Weinstein.
The championship game is Sunday, March 2.
The winner will earn the Centennial Conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
