Story and Photo by Sarah Olender
After an 18-day hiatus from gameplay, the Northeastern women’s basketball team was back in action. At long last, CAA play kicked off for the Huskies with a 77-67 victory over UNCW at home in the Cabot Center. Both teams came in a little rusty because both were coming back from weeks of COVID-related cancellations.
Northeastern guard Kendall Currence started the game off hot, getting her first layup less than 10 seconds into the game, but didn’t stop there. She established her court dominance by scoring 14 of Northeastern’s 20 points in the first quarter, helping the Huskies take an early lead.
She didn’t miss a beat in the second quarter, adding five more points to her total. But as the game went on, more Northeastern players started making their mark, finding more chances to score and tallying more points on the board.
Freshman Claudia Soriano, generally one of Northeastern’s top scorers, didn’t post many eye-popping stats during this game, aside from her six assists, but her presence was needed for the Huskies to find success. Her playmaking abilities are unmatched and the team used her vocal leadership on the court to set up plays and find their passes. She didn’t tally her highest point total today, but she still made timely baskets, adding 12 points to the final score.
Throughout the game, there was never a large score differential, which only made the final minutes of the game all the more suspenseful.
With under five minutes left in the game, UNCW’s Jayde Gamble found the basket while getting fouled, and then scored on her free throw, bringing the score up 64-61 in Northeastern’s favor.
At this point in the game, Northeastern sealed the deal by cranking up their intensity. With only a three-point lead, most teams would start to get nervous here, but not the Huskies. Making five of their last seven field goals, and all three of their last three point attempts from the floor, they were a force to be reckoned with. Their offense came alive in the last few minutes of the game, giving the Huskies a 77-67 win in both teams’ first conference game.
While Currence definitely was the standout player of the day with her career-high 27 points, Katie May also tied her previous season high of 18. May’s strong performance was just one example of the depth that this underdog team has.
Micah Hoggatt of UNCW also had a strong game with 20 points and 12 rebounds. She was able to draw fouls all over the court from Northeastern, definitely frustrating the Huskies.
Northeastern will be back at it on Sunday Jan. 9 at 12 p.m. Catherine Morrison will have the post-game story.