DELAND, Fla. – Stetson women's basketball will close out 2022 on a high note after taking down Winthrop, 53-28, Monday afternoon in the Edmunds Center. The Hatters fell to Akron in day one of the tournament.
"It was a good win for us, but we have a long way to go," head coach
Lynn Bria said "I don't think we had a good start today, and we've got some inconsistencies we have to get worked out. We will come in and work on some things to finish this and we clearly see what we need to do for conference. I think this non-conference schedule has shown us and exposed us in some ways to show where we have to get better. When we get back [from break] we have a real good opportunity to get better. It was good to finish on a win, and I thought the zone bothered Winthrop. We have not played a lot of zone, so we worked on that the past few days and I thought it was effective against Winthrop."
The Eagles jumped out of the gates to start the game, scoring nine of the first 10 points of the contest, but the Hatters struck back. As the offense has tended to be this year, SU was jump started by a made three;
Jordan Peete connected with the shot behind the arc at the 5:14 mark, cutting the advantage to five, 9-4 to the visitors. The quarter ended with Stetson on a 9-2 run trailing the guests by one, 11-10, after the segment ended.
Junior
Jordan Peete gave the Hats the lead early in the second quarter with a layup and a made free throw after the foul [13-11]. The visitors tied the game on the next basket, with Stetson going back in front following that with
Khamya McNeal sinking a jumper on the fast break [15-13] with 6:57 left in the half. The Hatters held Winthrop at bay before
Haley Stinebrickner made back-to-back baskets, a jumper and a three, to put Stetson up by double digits going into the locker room at halftime, 26-16. The Hats outscored the Eagles 16-5 in the frame.
The first field goal in the third quarter brought the score difference down to single digits [26-18], but on the following make, Stetson pushed it back to 10 on the next basket and did not allow the advantage to dip below 10 through the end of the game. Peete pushed the advantage to 16, 41-16, following a free throw with 2:19 in the frame.
Stetson closed the door on the game as the teams traded baskets, but SU maintained the double-digit advantage eventually pushing to the 15-point win.
The Hatters outscored Winthrop in the final three quarters, gaining the advantage in the second quarter, holding the visitors to five points. Stetson recorded 11 assists on 16 made field goals and held a rebound advantage of 46-35. SU recorded 20 points from the bench.
Three players scored in double figures with McNeal and Peete pacing the team with 13 points each.
Jaelyn Talley joins the pair with 10 points.
Sydney Gouard pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.
Kiya Turner tied her career high with six steals, also a game high. Turner and Talley each collected eight rebounds.
The Hatters now turn their attention to the ASUN slate. SU will face North Florida in 13 days as part of a Stetson basketball doubleheader. The women's team plays first with tipoff at 5 p.m. The men's game will tentatively tipoff at 7:30 p.m., but proper warmup time will be assessed following the conclusion of the women's game. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+.
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program is driven by a shared purpose. It is what inspires, motivates and binds us together. More than a task, a reason for being. THE HATTER PURPOSE is to create and provide an experience of a lifetime through teamwork and relationships to achieve excellence. This purpose is achieved through five Core Values: Communication, Integrity, Excellence, Value People and Commitment. To learn more about the HATS program and our Core Values, visit GoHatters.com/HATS (PDF).
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