FINAL SCORE: Vermont 68, UMBC 65

BURLINGTON, Vt. – Vermont (26-7, 13-3 AE) defeated UMBC (16-14, 10-6 AE) 68-65 Monday evening at Patrick Gym in the Air Force Reserve America East Semifinals in double overtime to advance to the America East Championship game for the fourth year in a row. 

RELATED LINKS
Box Score
CatamounTV: Highlights | Postgame ESPN Hit
Postgame: Coach Kresge | Priede

COACH'S QUOTE

"Found a way," said Mayer Women's Basketball Head Coach Alisa Kresge. "UMBC is a quite talented team. We've known that all year from the way they started; they've made our league better. So, a lot of credit to them, they made us work so hard for this. I am really pleased our players stood up to every punch we took and found a way." 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• UMBC's Jade Tillman and Vermont's Jadyn Weltz traded three-pointers to open the game. 

• Vermont went on a 10-0 run from the 6:44 mark of the first to the 3:29 mark, starting with Hanson nailing a close-range jumper, and Nikola Priede getting a layup to fall, which brought the Catamounts' lead to 15-7 just after the first timeout of the game.

• UMBC responded by going on a 6-5 run from the 3:07 mark of the first to the end of the first, with Kennedy Austin getting a floater to fall. A Jade Tillman three-pointer capped off the run. 

• Vermont outscored UMBC 12-10 in the second quarter to give the Catamounts a 32-23 lead heading into halftime, with scores coming from Weltz, Haan, Priede, and Hanson. 

• The Catamounts started the second half on a 5-2 run with Priede getting a layup to fall, and Weltz nailing a three-pointer. 

• From the 5:51 of the third to the end of the quarter, UMBC went on a 14-4 run. The run started with Carmen Yanez drilling a three-pointer, and ended with Alaina Williams getting a layup to fall with 59 seconds left in the quarter.

• The fourth quarter began with Tillman tying the contest at 41 apiece with a jumper from the left side.

• UVM went on a 9-7 run from the 7:03 mark of the fourth quarter to two seconds remaining in regulation. Tillman connected on a reverse layup to force overtime with no time remaining. 

• The first overtime started with a 5-4 UMBC run. The Catamounts responded with a 4-3 run with 42 seconds left at the end of the first overtime. Hanson nailed a baseline jumper to send the game into double overtime. 

• In double overtime, the Catamounts went on a 10-7 run. With Priede, Lenz, and Haan clinching the victory at the free-throw line.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Weltz led all Catamounts with 23 points. 

• Priede became the 28th Catamount to reach the 1,000 career point mark. She was second on the team with 22 points and corralled six rebounds. 

• Haan scored nine points and pulled in a team-high 14 rebounds. Her 14 rebounds and four steals were both new career-highs.

• Tillman led all scorers with 32 points.

• Vermont shot better from the field, going 24-52 (46.2%) compared to UMBC's 24-63 (38.1%) mark. 

• With today's Win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to the Ronald McDonald House through the Cat's Win, Community Win's initiative. Vermont Mutual has donated over $6 Million Dollars since launching their Charitable Giving Fund in 2014. 

UP NEXT

UVM will play Maine on Friday, March 13, for the America East Championship at Patrick Gym. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. ET. The game will air live on ESPNU, and the radio broadcast will be available via the Varsity Network App with Ryan Zimmerman on the call. A Fan Fest in the MAC Courts (East Lobby of Patrick Gym) will begin at 3 p.m., and doors will open at 3:30 p.m.

AE WBB Championship: Friday, March 13 at 5 p.m.

• General Public On Sale: Wednesday, March 11 at 12 p.m.

For news and updates about the Vermont women's basketball program, follow @UVMwbb on X and Facebook, @Catamountsbb on Instagram, and visit UVMathletics.com.