Augusta, ME – CMCC Women's Basketball got a full-team effort in their 74-61 win on the road against rival UMaine-Augusta. The Mustangs had 13 different players see the court for at least five minutes with 11 of them scoring a field goal. That depth helped the squad muscle their way past the Moose to open Yankee Small College Conference play with a win in a rematch of last year's tournament championship game.
Central Maine stormed out to a 20-2 lead in the first seven minutes and never let the lead slip below double digits from there. Hunter Hartsgrove and Caitlyn McCoy led the balanced attack as the only two Mustangs in double figures with 12 and 10 points respectively. Josie Friend pulled down a team-high nine rebounds, with Ava Smith and Breanna Dwyer each grabbing eight.
CMCC made a statement after two minutes of feeling things out, putting together an 18-0 run over the next five minutes to put the hosts on their heels. The first quarter ended with a 22-10 lead. Smith had five straight points to open the second with the platoon approach seeing 13 players on the floor in the first half. Head coach Andrew Morong's team took a 42-24 lead back to the locker room.
The visitors may have been guilty of taking their foot off the gas pedal in the third quarter. A Dwyer layup just 2:18 in built the lead to 25 points, the largest of the game, but the team was held to just one field goal for the remainder of the quarter. The 11 points in the third was their only one scoring less than 20.
The starters returned in the fourth and stifled any hopes of a UMA comeback. The Moose did finish with a flurry of 11 points in the final 2:22 to edge a little bit closer. Both teams struggled to get shots to fall consistently with Central Maine going 27-for-80 (33.8%) from the floor compared to UMaine-Augusta's 19-for-61 (31.1%). The rebound battle was also even 43-42, but the Mustangs had an edge with 22 forced turnovers and 11 three-pointers.
The win moves Central Maine to 3-0 overall to start the season and 1-0 in conference play. CMCC picks up the regular season victory after having their 47-game YSCC winning streak snapped by UMaine-Augusta last season. The two rivals have met in the conference championship game each of the last two years.
Next up for CMCC, a visit to the Washington County Community College Eagles on Saturday. The team then returns to Auburn to start a seven-game homestand, beginning with a visit from the Great Bay Herons on Tuesday, November 11th. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 pm on Veterans Day.
