Women’s basketball can’t pull upset over Upstate
Women’s basketball closed their season with a 76-50 loss to the USC Upstate Spartans in the A-Sun Quarterfinals March 4, in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
Osprey junior guard Claire Ioannidis tallied her seventh 20-point game of the season and tied Jadhken Kerr’s UNF single-season record for made three-pointers at 80.
Karrah Johnson’s jumper scored the first points of the game for the Ospreys. The lead would be short-lived, and a three-pointer by Spartans’ guard Brittany Clency gave Upstate a 5-4 advantage.
Both teams went basket for basket in the first quarter, with the Spartans closing the quarter on a run for a 17-9 score.
In the second quarter, the Ospreys put together a 11-7 run behind stellar shooting from Claire Ioannidis, to cut the deficit to four points with five minutes left.
Going into the break, UNF trailed Upstate 31-22.
In the second half, the Spartans’ offensive power became too much as they pushed the lead further.
UNF guard Sierra Shepherd scored six of the Ospreys’ 12 points in the third quarter, but going into the final quarter the Ospreys trailed 51-34.
The Ospreys were outscored 16-25 in the fourth, leading to the season-ending defeat.
UNF shot 29.2 percent from the field compared to USC Upstate’s 41.7 percent. From downtown, the Ospreys shot 21.1 percent to the Spartans’ 38.1 percent.
The Ospreys turned the ball over 13 times, leading to 12 Spartan points.
On the boards, UNF was out-rebounded 55-36. In the paint, the Spartans tallied 38 points to UNF’s 18. USC Upstate also had 16 more assists than the Ospreys.
Spartan guard Raven Jefferson led her team with 23 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Center Brittany Starling added 18 points, 10 rebounds and two assists.
Ioannidis finished the night with 21 points, four rebounds and one assist.
Shepherd contributed 10 points, six rebounds and two assists.
The Ospreys finished the season with a record of 7-23.
UNF softball dominates weekend tournament
The UNF softball team brought home four wins from its weekend tournament at UCF, thanks to clutch, late-game hitting and strong defensive.
Day One v. LIU-Brooklyn
The Ospreys started the opening game with a run in the first inning, but LIU struck back with four runs in the top of the fifth to take the lead over UNF.
In the the bottom half of the fifth inning, Osprey Stacy McClelland hit a single to bring home Katie Mandigo and Navia Penrod. Jenna Brownell then hit an RBI double to tie the game 4-4.
Katie Mandio sealed the victory with a walk-off hit that scored Minnie Cocuzza, making the final score 5-4.
UNF had 16 hits and two errors, compared to LIU-Brooklyn’s seven hits and one error.
Day One v. La Salle
In the second game, UNF took an early 4-0 lead after three innings of play.
La Salle scored its only run in the fourth inning.
The Ospreys responded with five more insurance runs in the bottom of the fifth, and would go on to win 9-1.
UNF had seven hits and one error, while La Salle had three hits and two errors.
The Ospreys would carry the positive momentum with them for the rest of the tournament
Day Two v. Middle Tennessee
Similar to the day before, the Ospreys got on the board first thanks to Jenna Brownell’s two-RBI single. Two innings later, Middle Tennessee brought in three runs of its own to snatch the lead from UNF.
When the Ospreys came to the plate in the bottom of the third, Shelby Duncan stroked a bases-clearing double to take a 6-3 advantage.
The lead would be short-lived in the fifth, when Middle Tennessee put up three runs to tie the game 6-6.
In the seventh inning Brownell drove in her third RBI of the game and pushed the Ospreys to a 7-6 victory.
The Ospreys had 11 hits to Middle Tennessee’s 13 for the third win of the tournament.
Day Two v. South Dakota
In the final game for the Ospreys, no runs would be scored by either team until the fifth inning.
UNF scored two runs off an error and then a sacrifice fly.
South Dakota would strike back with a bases-clearing double to take the 4-2 lead.
UNF answered in the sixth with a four-run rally.
Navia Penrod started it off with a single that scored two runs. Katie Mandigo followed with an RBI single, and Shelby Duncan capped the inning with her own RBI single, giving the Ospreys a 6-4 win.
UNF had 10 hits while South Dakota had six hits and three errors.
The Ospreys will be on the road in the USF Under Armour Showcase in Clearwater, FL next weekend.
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