Women’s Hoops: Vermont Goes on the Road, Earns Win at NJIT

Posted on by George Commo

Courtesy Vermont Sports Information

NEWARK, N.J. – Hanna Crymble scored 26 points to lead Vermont in a 71-63 win over NJIT Sunday afternoon in non-conference action from the NJIT Wellness and Events Center. The Catamounts improve to 4-4 on the season while the Highlanders fall to 1-8.

COACH’S QUOTE
“Today was a very good road win for our program,” said head coach Alisa Kresge. “We competed for 40 minutes on both sides of the ball, four players in double figures and a true team effort on the defensive end. It’s great to see this group working hard, playing with passion and getting the win.”

HOW IT HAPPENED
Crymble opened the scoring in this one scoring the first four points of the tilt. She had a team-high six points in the first quarter. The Highlanders held a 17-14 lead after the first quarter. Sunday was the third straight game the Catamounts have been outscored in the opening frame.
Vermont opened the second quarter on a 9-2 run, once again fueled by Crymble scoring the first four points. The Catamounts took a five-point lead with three minutes left in the quarter off a Sarah Wells (5 Pts) three-pointer. The Highlanders cut that lead to one late in the half but Lauren Handy (14 Pts) hit another triple in the final minute to give Vermont a four-point cushion at halftime.
Early in the third quarter the Catamounts used a 6-0 run to push their advantage to a game-high 10 points at 37-27. Sarah Wells scored in transition on a feed from Rose Caverly (13 Pts) that forced NJIT to call timeout just 2:05 into the second half.
Midway through the third quarter the Highlanders cut the lead to four but a Crymble jumper and Caverly’s second three-pointer of the quarter helped Vermont take a 49-42 advantage into the fourth quarter.
2:54 into the final frame NJIT was able to cut Vermont’s lead down to four again with a Milena Bajic layup, giving her a team-high 17 points on the night.
But once again New Jersey native Caverly stepped up for Vermont. Seconds after the Bajic make she completed a three-point play from the free throw line and the Catamounts never looked back.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Four different Catamounts hit a three-pointer in the first half (Carmen Handy, Lauren Handy, Sarah Wells and Candice Wright).
Vermont’s bench outscored the Highlanders 17-4. Lauren Handy’s season-high 14 points was the majority of the Catamounts’ bench scoring.
Rose Caverly scored a career-high 13 points in her first collegiate game in her home state of New Jersey.
With 26 points on the afternoon Hanna Crymble is just 19 away from becoming the 22nd player in program history to reach 1,000 career points.
WHO’S NEXT
The Catamounts return home to face Yale on Saturday, December 8 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase at UVMathletics.com/Tickets or at the Patrick Gym Box Office on game day. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.