Fairfield (27-4) played Quinnipiac (26-5) in the MAAC championship game for the second consecutive year. Last year, Fairfield won 76-53, and on Monday night, the Stags prevailed again, 51-44. The win gave Fairfield its third consecutive women’s MAAC championship.
ATLANTIC CITY, live coverage from Press Row, Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall — For the third straight year, the Stags will be in the NCAA tournament as MAAC champions, and fourth-year coach Carly Thibault-DuDonis basked in the glory.
What an incredible team, Quinnipiac,” she said. They’re a good basketball team. I’m proud of our team’s grit. I’m proud of how we evolved as a high-offensive team. It was a nail-biter. I loved how we answered the bell.
Photo courtesy ESPN
The Stags dominated most of the game. Their largest lead was 47-37 with 3:04 in regulation. But the Bobcats made it interesting on a 7-0 run, cutting their deficit to 47-44. Sydney Ryan had a good look at the 3-point line, but it rimmed out in a missed attempt to tie the game with 23 seconds left. Janelle Brown grabbed the rebound for the Stags, and Kaety L’Amoreaux clinched the win by hitting two free throws.
For the Bobcats, all they can think about is what could have been.
QU’s Anna Foley had 17 points on the night on 7 for 11 shooting (photo courtesy Quinnipiac University)
“Like (Anna) Foley’s shot the other night (that helped the Bobcats win), I said a prayer to let that baby (shot) in,” said Tricia Fabbri, the longtime Quinnipiac coach, of Ryan calling her shot. “We would do the thing same thing with Sydney. It was a good shot. Unfortunately, it rimmed out.”
Foley spoke with pride about her best friend. “It was the right shot,” she said. “We thought it would go in. We believed in each other. We would take a shot 100 times.”
For the Stags, the missed shot was a relief. “A great shot,” Thibault-Dudonis said. “We did not cover defensively. I’m thankful we got the rebound.”
Fairfield’s experience in the championship game served them well in surviving their opponent’s late run. “We focused lot of adversity,” junior forward Megan Andersen said after a nine-point performance. “Our experience kept my head in the game. It was a good game.”
Thibault knew her team could handle it. “It helped that we played through adversity by playing a lot of close games this season,” she said.
Player of the Game, MVP of the tournament (photo courtesy Jersey Mikes and Instagram)
Stags junior guard Jillian Huerter won the MAAC MVP tournament after scoring a team-high 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including four 3-pointers. “It was surreal,” Huerter said of Stags fans chanting MVP. “I couldn’t do it without my teammates.”
Stags sophomore forward Cyanne Coe played the role of an unsung hero with a double-double (15 points and 10 rebounds). Foley added nine rebounds to her 17 points, and Ella Ryan scored 14 points. Quinnipiac stayed in the game by outrebounding the Stags 35-27. Plus, their bench outscored their opponent 17-4.
After taking a 76-53 loss in last year’s MAAC title game, it was a bittersweet feeling this time around for the Bobcats after giving Fairfield a scare.
Fabbri put it this way: “This is a challenging moment for a team that left everything on the court. Jackie’s (Grisdale) career comes to an end. Jackie was a gamer. What a week for (Anna) Foley at the tournament. The future looks bright. It was enjoyable coaching them. They’re good humans. This was one of the most fun years I ever had. We are going to look back on it as one of the great years for Quinnipiac.”
For Grisdale, it was the journey that would stand out for Quinnipiac. “Coach built this foundation,” she said. “She created this sisterhood. I felt like a mother working with underclassmen the last two years. I couldn’t be any prouder of them. The program will continue to do amazing things.”
