The Berkeley College women's basketball team dropped a pair of games this weekend, falling to the Mustang of Central Maine Community College on Friday evening by a score of 81-65, before suffering a 76-58 defeat to the Seawolves of Southern Maine Community College on Saturday. With the losses, the Knights are now 1-3 on the 2023-2024 campaign.
In the Knights' loss to the Mustangs, Berkeley was paced by standout Keisy Villanueva, as she posted a double-double, finishing with a team-high 20 points, and game-highs of 14 rebounds and nine blocks. Khya Hough added 18 points and a team-high four steals, and Jordan Washington posted a double-double, netting 11 points and snatching 10 rebounds in 23 minutes of action.
Leading the way for Central Maine Community College was Ella Lavigne, as she was the only Mustangs player to score in double figures, recording game-highs of 31 points and eight steals. She also snatched nine rebounds while dishing two assists. Chantel Ouellette put together a fine all-around game, as she scored nine points, piled a game-high five assists, and recorded five steals. Molly Corbett netted eight points in 21 minutes off the bench, and Destiny Mora Lopez finalized her evening with six points, 11 rebounds, and a team-high four swatted shots.
Central Maine dominated for a majority of the game. The Mustangs raced out to a 10-0 advantage in the early stages of the contest, before snatching a 27-12 advantage following 10 minutes of action. Just as they did in the first quarter, Central Maine netted the opening 10 points of the second, as the Mustangs opened up a commanding 37-12 lead. That would be the biggest lead of the opening half for the hosts, who eventually took a 45-22 edge into the locker room at halftime.
After the teams failed to combine to hit 40 total points in either of the first two quarters, the squads combined for a whopping 50 points in the third, with Central Maine narrowly outscoring the Knights in the period by a count of 26-24. Unfortunately for Berkeley, the team was only able to get as close as 21 points down (55-34), as Central Maine led 71-46 after three.
The Knights did show some fight in the final quarter, outscoring the Mustangs 19-10 while forcing nine Central Maine turnovers. The deficit Berkeley had coming into the final period was too much to overcome, however, as the Mustangs held on for a 16-point win (81-65).
Neither squad shot well from the floor, with Central Maine's conversion rate being 39.3 percent (33-84), while Berkeley connected on 25 of their 76 attempts (32.9 percent). The Mustangs held a 51-40 advantage in the rebounding department, while also piling 17 assists compared to nine for the Knights. Berkeley had 28 turnovers, while Central Maine finished with 21.
A day later, in Berkeley's 18-point loss to the Seawolves, the Knights were paced by Hough, as she registered team-bests of 20 points and five assists to go along with five rebounds and three steals. Villanueva added a double-double with 14 points, 11 boards, and team-highs of six blocks and four steals. Kanijah Jacobs finalized her afternoon with seven points, while Za'Nya Henderson added six. Finally, it was Desiraye Sealy netting five points and snatching a team-high 12 boards.
For Southern Maine Community College, Maddy York knocked down nine of her 17 attempts from the floor, including three shots from downtown, to finish with a game-high 22 points. She also snatched three rebounds while adding three assists. Hannah Thorsen scored 13 points while pulling down five boards in 15 minutes off the bench, and Hope Butler (10 points, seven rebounds, six assists) also had a fine all-around game for the victorious hosts.
Things looked promising for the Knights early, with Berkeley recording the first five points of the game, courtesy of a made jumper by Hough, and a converted trifecta by Jacobs, inside the opening 29 seconds of action. Later the teams were tied at 11 apiece with 2:52 remaining in the first, before Southern Maine finished the period on a 10-3 run, highlighted by a pair of buckets by Brown. The Seawolves led 21-14 after one.
In the second quarter, Berkeley trailed 30-21 with 4:07 remaining in the period, before going on a 9-4 run over a two minute span to pull to within four points (34-30). Villanueva (five points) and Henderson (four points) accounted for the Knights' scoring during the spurt. Southern Maine raced back up by eight points (40-32) with just under 40 seconds left in the half, but Hough's layup with 27 seconds left pulled Berkeley to within six points, 40-34, as the curtain dropped on the opening half.
Things started to get away from Berkeley in the third quarter. Southern Maine scored the first four points of the session to take a double-digit lead (44-34), and the Mustangs would eventually go up by as many as 17 (53-36) before taking a 58-45 edge into the final period.
The Knights were never able to pull to within closer than 13 for the entirety of the fourth, and the Seawolves continued to gradually increased their lead, eventually winning by 18 (76-58).
The Seawolves connected on 45.3 percent of their attempts (29-64) from the floor, while Berkeley hit on just 33.3 percent of their shots (24-72). Southern Maine held a 50-42 advantage in the rebounding department, while also registering 22 assists compared to seven for the Knights. The teams each committed 19 turnovers.
The Knights will look to get back on track next Saturday, as the team will play its home opener against Vermont State University Randolph. The game will take place at CCNY's Nat Holman Gymnasium in Harlem, NY. Start-time is scheduled for 1:00pm.
