March 11, 2010
Box Score
Watch Easter and Coach Porter's Postgame Press Conference
HARRISONBURG, Va. - All-Rookie Team honoree Amber Easter finished with a team-high 14 points but the fifth-seeded Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens used a big first-half run to get past the No. 12-seeded George Mason women's basketball team, 58-41, in the first round of the 2010 Virginia 529 College Savings Plan Colonial Athletic Association Championship Thursday afternoon at the JMU Convocation Center.
The Patriots finish their season with a 10-20 record, their most wins since 2005-06, while the Blue Hens (20-10) will move on to play fourth-seeded Drexel on Friday afternoon at 2:30 p.m.
Easter was joined in double figures by junior Brittany Poindexter who added 12 points. Easter also led all players with seven rebounds, despite UD out-rebounding the Patriots by a 37-to-28 margin. CAA Rookie and Player of the Year Elena Delle Donne was limited to her lowest scoring output of the season with a game-high 16 points.
Mason got on the board first on a layup by Easter, scoring the game's first points 2:18 into the contest. She followed it up with a second-chance layup underneath 30 seconds later. The Blue Hens' first points came on a pair of free throws by Danielle Parker which cut the gap to 4-2.
The Patriots continued to lead until Bailey's layup at the 12:40 mark put UD ahead, 12-11, part of a 9-0 run that saw the Blue Hens take a 17-11 advantage. Mason came back to within a basket at 19-17, but a 14-2 run spanning nearly four minutes by Delaware gave them a 33-19 lead. Janaa Pickard ended the scoring spree with a pair of free throws with just over three minutes remaining, but Mason could not advance within single digits as the Blue Hens took a 34-23 lead into the halftime locker room - UD's first halftime lead over the Patriots this season.
Easter led all scorers with 10 points and she added five rebounds, while Kayla Miller had eight to pace the Blue Hens. UD shot 54.2 percent (13-24) from the field in the half, besting Mason's mark of 35.7 percent (10-28) while Delaware held a slim 17-to-16 advantage off the glass.
With the first basket of the half by Poindexter 36 seconds into play, Mason cut the gap to nine but would not be able to get within a single-digit margin again in the game as Delaware led by as many as 25 points during the second half. Thursday's game was the final contest for senior Rashauna Hobbs, who finished with one rebound in 16 minutes of action.
