WALTHAM, Mass. - The #3/4 ranked Thomas Jefferson University women's basketball team (32-1) went into their biggest matchup of the season against the Falcons, the number one team in the East Region. The Rams took the attack early on, outscoring the Falcons 24-6 in the first quarter which helped Jefferson go onto a 68-50 victory over #12/8 ranked Bentley University (27-6) to move onto the NCAA East Region Finals on Monday. 

WHAT HAPPENED
The Rams started the game off with a 11-2 run that saw all four 1,000 point scorers get on the board, with each one of those players staying on the court for the full 40 minutes of the game. Sam Yencha began the game with an and-one, Cassie Murphy knocked down two baskets, Haley Meinel and Morgan Robinson both got their shots down to get an early lead over Bentley. Jefferson kept their attack going, going 11-of-19 on the floor in the first quarter while holding the Falcons to 3-of-15. Murphy got her own and-one play to get them up 24-6 into the second.

Bentley looked to get back into their matchup as Brooke Obar made a three and Ciara Norman converted on a layup, but Yencha answered with her own shot made. Emily Keehfuss hit a three to get the game back at 18 point difference. Both teams would trade baskets, giving the Rams an advantage with their lead they built up as Jefferson went into the break up 38-23.
 
Cassidy Yeomans made a three and jumpshot for the Falcons, but Meinel and Murphy each had a basket to get them the Rams to a 42-28 lead. Bentley hit another jumpshot and three pointer to get closer to Jefferson, but the Rams ended the third on a 8-0 run as Meinel had four of those points in that stretch to give Jefferson a 54-33 lead heading into the final quarter.
 
Bentley made one last effort, outscoring their opponent 17-14 in the final quarter. Ella Thompson made back to back three pointers and Kylie Ducharme converted on an and-one to get closer to the Ram lead. Morgan Robinson made all four of her free throw attempts at the end of the game, with Jefferson going 6-10 on the line as the Rams held onto the 68-50 win and will head onto the NCAA East Region Championship for the second year in a row.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Cassie Murphy: 19 points on 9-of-15 shooting, 6 rebounds
Morgan Robinson: 17 points on 6-of-14 shooting, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals
Haley Meinel: 15 points on 7-of-13 shooting, 2 assists
Sam Yencha: 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting, 17 rebounds, 4 assists

LONGEST WIN STREAK
The Rams earned their 23 consecutive win on the season, pushing them to the longest win streak in Jefferson history. They pass the 22 consecutive wins that was set back in the 1992-93 season.
 
UP NEXT
Jefferson will now stay in Waltham, Massachusetts as they compete in the NCAA East Region Championship on Monday, March 18 at 7 p.m. The Rams will take on #6 Daemen University, who defeated #2 Assumption 68-58 earlier in the day. The Rams and Wildcats meet for the third consecutive year in the NCAA Tournament. Daemen took the first matchup against Jefferson 70-52 in the 2021-22 NCAA East Region Semifinals. The Rams got the win back last season when they defeated the Wildcats 74-47 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in 2022-23.