NEWARK — Ursuline cut St. Elizabeth’s lead to four points late in the third quarter, but a 10-0 run by the Vikings propelled them to a 56-40 victory on March 10 at the Bob Carpenter Center. Third-seeded St. Elizabeth returns to the championship for the second consecutive season; the Vikings will play No. 1 Sanford on Saturday at 1 p.m.
It will be the second consecutive title-game appearance for St. Elizabeth, who lost last season to Caravel.
Ursuline’s Naiya Murphy hit four free throws to cut the Vikings’ lead to 31-27 with 2:29 left in the third quarter, and momentum seemed to be favoring the Raiders, the 15th seed. Za’Mylah Seda-Owens then picked up her fourth personal foul, and Ursuline had a chance to get within a field goal of the lead. The Vikings, however, had other plans.
After a Raiders miss, Anissa Harris hit a 17-foot jumper with two minutes to go. Thirty seconds later, Skylar Bolden got loose for a layup. Freshman Taylor Tucker then came up with an interception and went coast to coast for a layup, and she added a free throw for a three-point play. On Ursuline’s next trip down the floor, Sany’a Moody-Adams blocked a shot, and Harris completed the sequence with a corner three in front of the St. Elizabeth student section. The lead was 14.
Ursuline, after making just one field goal in the third quarter, heated up in the fourth. Amoree Anderson, wrapping up an impressive freshman season, had three in the final quarter, and Murphy also had one. But the Vikings did not let the Raiders cut into the lead. Bolden was strong underneath, and Makayla Sullivan added a pair of buckets, including one three-point play.
Sullivan and Tucker each had 14 for the Vikings, who improved to 19-3. Bolden had 10, and Seda-Owens and Harris each scored nine.
Murphy, who will play at Army next season, led the Raiders with 18 points and nine rebounds. Anderson added 15. Ursuline finished the season 13-10.
Photos by Mike Lang.
