#16 Hope Secures 73-57 Victory over Salem State

Jose Rodriguez '24, Staff Writer | Media & Communications 

BRONX, N.Y.-   Sydney Vis (Byron Center, Michigan) and Chloe Brunsberg (Chaska, Minnesota) combined for 36 points to give nationally ranked Hope the 73-57 victory over Salem State on Thursday afternoon at the APEX at Lehman College. Salem State will face either Lehman College or Pitt-Bradford tomorrow for the consolation game at noon.  The Flying Dutch improved their overall record to 11-1 while the Vikings dropped to 5-6.

Vis netted a game-high 22 points while adding four assists while Courtney Lee (Fishers, Indiana) helped her team secure the victory with seven rebounds.

On the other side, the Vikings fought hard but fell short as Kylie Gates (Pembroke, Mass.) led the team with 16 points and four assists. Ernidia Goncalves (Everett, Mass.) was a rebound shy of a double-double with nine points and 14 rebounds.

After the game Gates talked about her performance. "It was a good game, we fought hard and were able to get a few quick scoring opportunities."

Both teams struggled to score in the game's opening minutes but Salem State Amayah McConney (Salem, Mass.)  opened the gates with a basket to give the Vikings the first tally of the game.

From there, the Flying Dutch took the 5-2 lead in the first five minutes of the game before Goncalves narrowed the gap to make it a one-point game. Hope went on a 7-0 run to extend their lead to eight points before taking the 14-6 edge to close the opening stanza.

The Vikings started the second period with two quick buckets from Gates and Nicolette D'Itria (Revere, Mass.) to make it a four-point game. However, the Flying Dutch responded strongly to find themselves ahead by eight once again. Salem State gained momentum as the game progressed and went on a 9-0 run, highlighted by a Teng three-pointer, which allowed them to take the 23-22 lead. Hope would regain the lead shortly after and hold the slight 31-27 advantage to head into the break.

Gates talked about the run, "We had great energy in that run again just moving the ball and passing, scoring and looking for each other." Coach White added "Our offense started flowing and we were moving the ball, we were taking good shots and just continued to do that and work for each other and move the ball and gets some good looks."

At the start of the second half, Hope burst into action with an impressive 14-2 run before Teng stopped the bleeding to make it a 45-31 game. However, the Vikings managed to show some signs of life towards the end of the third period, putting together a 6-2 run to enter the final 10 minutes behind, 50-39.

Despite their efforts in the opening minutes of the fourth, Salem State still found themselves in a tough spot, down by 11 points with a score of 56-44.Gates managed to bang in a three, bringing the Vikings within striking distance with only four minutes left on the clock, but despite their valiant efforts that would be as close as they would get as Hope would go on to secure the 73-57 victory.

After the game coach White talked about Gates and Teng combining for 31 points in the game: "They were both carrying most of our offense. Kylie was looking to draw down the baseline and Abuk was making really good cuts to the hoop for the open shot."