AMHERST — It’s on to another Final Four for the Amherst College women’s basketball team.
Amherst won its 64th straight game Saturday night, a 62-38 Elite Eight triumph over the University of Rochester that enabled the Mammoths to punch their ticket to the NCAA Division III Final Four at the Mayo Clinic Center in Rochester, Minnesota.
Amherst is the reigning champion and will play its semifinal game Friday.
Amherst has not lost since being beaten by Thomas More in the 2016 national semifinals. Amherst will make its third straight Final Four appearance.
“We’re excited,” Amherst coach G.P. Gromacki said. “We’ve got two more games and right now, all we’re thinking about is our next game.”
Saturday’s game, played before a crowd of 876 at LeFrak Gymnasium, wasn’t easy. The Mammoths got off to a slow start (by their standards) before coming to life late in the first quarter.
Amherst (31-0) trailed, 9-6, before the Mammoths took control following a 14-5 run that carried over into the second quarter. Madeline Eck’s layup with 7:35 remaining in the second quarter provided Amherst with a 20-11 advantage.
“They took it upon themselves,” Gromacki said. “I was impressed. We played a great team with skilled players.”
Amherst never trailed following that early deficit. The Mammoths stuck to what has worked best for them throughout the tournament — namely getting open for quick layups and playing shutdown defense.
Amherst rarely gave Rochester (24-5) a second look at the basket. When the Yellowjackets managed to grab an offensive rebound they were usually greeted by a brick wall of defenders that have made the Mammoths the top-ranked defense in the nation..
Gromacki went with his starting five for almost the entire game as the Mammoths closed with an 11-4 fourth quarter run. He didn’t put in a call to the bench until the final 72 seconds.
“No reason to take them out,” Gromacki said.
Emma McCarthy led Amherst with 17 points. Hannah Fox had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Hannah Hackley and Eck each finished with 15 points. Lauren Deming and Lena Ethington combined for 27 of Rochester’s 38 points.
Amherst built a 35-24 lead at halftime. McCarthy gave the Mammoths the double-digit lead with a late layup.
The Mammoths expanded their lead to 22 points after a 3-pointer by Hackley and a layup by McCarthy that barely beat the shot clock. That gave Amherst a commanding 56-24 lead with 7:48 remaining in the game.
Things began to tighten up during the third quarter when Rochester pulled to within 37-31 on Ethington’s basket. But a 3-pointer and two free throws by Hackley provided the Mammoths with a 42-31 edge.
The Mammoths went on a 14-3 run capped by an Eck layup before the third quarter ended. At one point, Amherst scored 12 unanswered points. Rochester got a 3-pointer by Lauren Foley late in the quarter.
Rochester got off to a 6-2 start, but a pair of quick baskets by the Mammoths tied the game at six apiece.
Rochester went ahead 9-6 on a 3-pointer by Brynn Lauer. But the lead wouldn’t last long and for the second time in three years, Rochester saw its season end in the Elite Eight by Amherst.