NORFOLK, Virginia — Sophomore Ariana Seawell (The Bronx, New York) scored eight points in the decisive fourth quarter — including what would be the game winner — and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore put together a lock down defensive effort to upset No. 2 seeded Morgan State 49-46 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Quarterfinals on Wednesday (March 8).
The Hawks (10-19) will play the winner of Thursday's matchup between No. 3 Howard and No. 6 Delaware State.
"The girls did a great job of fighting through," Hawks coach Fred Batchelor said. "We struggled all year long with being poised and not getting too high and not getting too low. I thought in the second half we did a good job of that. We had some things that didn't go our way and our kids found a way to fight through it."
The Hawks started strong in the early going and used a 15-0 to go from trailing 10-7 to leading 22-10 with 5:36 to go in the first half. But Morgan chipped away, cutting it to 26-23 with less than a minute left in the half.
"That kind of gave us a cushion and it allowed us to feel a little more comfortable on the defensive end," Batchelor said. "I thought our ability to be able to make some shots, created a cushion for us and they made a run in a game of runs. Fortunately we were able to make the run at the end because we knew it was going to be a dog fight the whole way through.
With four second left in the first half UMES junior Zamara Haynes (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) to the inbound pass near her own bench drove up the court, and buried a three pointer to give the Hawks the momentum back heading into the half and put the cap on 15 first-half points.
"As I was pushing the ball up the court, I felt like I was going to be able to get my shot off," Haynes said. "I just wanted to make sure it was a good shot, I didn't want to force it and if I could draw a foul I was looking to do that as well. I got a great screen by Ariana, so once I saw that opening I felt like I had the ball in the palm of my hand and I just followed through and it felt good the whole way."
After the break, Morgan made some adjustments that seemed to solve their Haynes problem, and the Hawks fought their way through a third quarter which saw them get whistled for as many fouls — seven — as they scored points.
At the end of the third they trailed 40-36, but Batchelor saw his relatively inexperienced team grow up a lot in that second half.
"I definitely think they did (grow up tonight)," an emotional Batchelor said. "The more I do this the more I appreciate these kids for what they give us every day and I am fortunate and blessed to be able to lead them, so I thank them."
The play of the frontcourt was especially important against an experienced Morgan squad that boasts size on the perimeter. The Hawks won the battle on the glass 39-18 and had 10 offensive rebounds.
"We don't like to leave everything on our guards," senior Mahogany Lester (Virginia Beach, Virginia said) said. "We are all a team and we should be able to work together and get through what we have to get through. It's not fair to leave everything on the guards, so that's what made us emphasize post play because Morgan has some nice post players."
Lester played a strong defensive first half and provided energy and physical presence in the paint and in transition. But defending Morgan and graduate forward and First-Team All-MEAC performer Charlene Shephard proved challenging and in that tough third quarter, the Hawks found themselves in foul trouble.
"Morgan has a 6-foot-2 wing," Lester said. "When you have a 6-2 wing it just emphasizes everything on the inside even more and now every single ball that comes off the glass there is a possibility she can come in and scoop it up — even if we box out the forwards there is still a possibility she can get in there."
Lester, who played 23 minutes in the game and had five points and six rebounds, was limited to eight minutes in the second half after picking up her fourth foul, but did play a role in the decisive fourth.
"It makes it easier too when you know that we can go to the bench and not have to worry about any drop-offs," Lester said. "We can rely on all of our post players. I believe in my team, so I will sit there on the bench and know they will go out there and carry the slack and pick it up."
Freshman Lainey Allen (Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania) had nine rebounds and six points in her postseason debut and Seawell had six rebounds to go with her 10 points.
"Aria was huge with her ability to score inside and she has been giving us games like that all year long," Batchelor said. "She hasn't been as consistent this season because she's a sophomore who is learning as she goes and she finished last year injured, so she really hasn't played two full years of basketball. Her development is huge and she is a really great kid."
The win was the third time since the 2013-14 season that the Hawks have upset the No. 1 or No. 2 seeded team in the Tournament. They previously beat No. 1 Hampton in the semifinals in 2013-14 and No. 1 seeded Bethune Cookman in 2019-20 in the quarterfinals before the COVID 19 pandemic cut the Tournament short.
