DURHAM, N.C. – No. 15 Lehigh (27-7, 15-3 PL) fell to No. 2 Duke (27-7, 14-4 ACC), 86-25, on Friday during the NCAA DI Women’s Basketball Championship First Round at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.
Senior guard Ella Stemmer led the Mountain Hawks in scoring with eight points, while senior guard Colleen McQuillen grabbed a team-high seven boards.
Duke shot 46 percent (31-67) from the floor and connected on 11 of their 29 threes, as five Blue Devils hit two or more 3-pointers.
Patriot League Champion Lehigh played their fifth NCAA Tournament game in program history under fourth-year head coach Addie Micir. The Patriot League Coach of the Year guided Lehigh to 27 wins, their most wins since the 2009-10 season.
NCAA DI WOMEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP FIRST ROUND
NO. 2 DUKE BLUE DEVILS (26-7, 14-4 ACC) 86, NO. 15 LEHIGH MOUNTAIN HAWKS (27-6, 15-3 PL) 25
Cameron Indoor Stadium/ Durham, N.C.
BOX SCORE | .PDF GAME BOOK
Durham, N.C. – No. 2 Duke relied on their strong offense to defeat No. 15 Lehigh in the
NCAA DI Women’s Basketball Championship First Round.
*The Blue Devils started the game on an 8-0 run before senior guard Ella Stemmer knocked down a three to open the scoring for the Mountain Hawks.
*A corner three by Stemmer on Lehigh’s final possession of the first quarter cut the Duke lead to 13-8, heading into the second quarter.
*The Blue Devils used a 20-point second quarter to extend their lead to 33-10 at the halftime break.
*Duke came out strong to open the third, scoring the first 13 points. Lehigh scored seven points in the final minutes of the quarter to trail, 57-17, going into the fourth.
*The Blue Devils opened the final frame with four consecutive threes and carried their momentum through the rest of the game to earn the win.
*Stemmer paced the Mountain Hawks with eight points, while fifth-year Maddie Albrecht and senior guard Colleen McQuillen added four points each.
*The Blue Devils were led by 15 points by sophomore guard Oluchi Okananwa. Freshman forward Toby Fournier and sophomore forward Delaney Thomas added 11 points apiece.
POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE EXCERPTS
OPENING STATEMENT
ADDIE MICR: All right, I think goes without saying not our best but what we said to the team is we would rather be in the arena. This is a team full of seniors and senior leadership that has absolutely set this culture and this program up for success in the future.
Moment might have been a little bit big right now, but one thing that we all made a promise to them is the next time we're back here we're going to make them really, really proud.
Q. Since you are senior captain and everything, what do you want the younger players from Lehigh and on your team to take from this experience?
ELLA STEMMER: That's a good question. I'm going to give it to Sue Troyan who said it best. She gave us a shoutout for making it here and told us to be proud of this. Honestly this should become a standard for our program. Next year teams are going to come hunting us. We are going to have a target on our back. I remember coming in freshmen year the team before won the Patriot League, so I remember coming in and hearing that. Just show up every day and do it for the teammates and enjoy the process. We said it the very first day and I'm going to encourage them to do the same.
For more from Coach Micir and Ella Stemmer, click below.
POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT | PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO
LEHIGH RELEASE
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes who are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.