After dropping both games to Bryant in America East (AE) conference play, the Binghamton women’s basketball team flipped the script on Friday night, defeating the Bulldogs 56-51 in the AE quarterfinals. With the win, BU will take a trip to the AE semifinals for the first time since 2020.

“It feels great [to advance to the AE semifinals],” said Binghamton head coach Bethann Shapiro Ord. “We have so many weapons. There’s multiple people that can score it any given night.”

After the Bulldogs (15-15, 8-9 AE) scored the first four points, graduate student guard Denai Bowman got Binghamton (14-16, 9-8 AE) on the board with a layup. Despite the Bulldogs being in front early, sophomore guard/forward Camryn Fauria and junior forward Genevieve Coleman drained jumpers to give the Bearcats an 8-6 lead. Then, redshirt sophomore guard Ella Wanzer extended the BU lead to four at 13-9 with her first three-pointer of the game. Things continued going back and forth as Bryant retook the lead 14-13 going into the second period.

“It was just back and forth,” Shapiro Ord. “We didn’t score right away … it all stemmed from our defense.”

Binghamton opened the second quarter on a 9-0 run to regain the lead at 20-14 as Bowman drained four free throws, Fauria knocked down a three-pointer and Wanzer played two points in. Meanwhile, for the first six minutes of the period, the Bearcats’ defense held the Bulldogs scoreless. Bowman scored nine points and went 7-of-8 from the line in the period. Meanwhile, the Bearcats outscored the Bulldogs 14-6 in the second quarter, taking a 27-20 advantage going into halftime.

“[Bryant] went on their run and we didn’t falter,” Shapiro Ord said, “We didn’t put our heads down. We just kept battling and battling. We out-rebounded them, which was one of our main focuses and main adjustments is we can’t give them second chance opportunities.”

Bryant opened up the second half on a 7-2 run to cut the Binghamton lead to two at 29-27. BU came back with an 8-0 run to make it a 10-point game. Bowman spearheaded this run, completing a three-point play and making a layup while Fauria drained another three-pointer as BU went up 37-27. However, Bryant stayed within striking distance, ending the period on a 7-0 run to cut the Bearcats’ lead to 37-34 heading into the fourth quarter.

“[The defense and rebounding] was excellent,” Shapiro Ord said. “We couldn’t let [Bryant] go off, and I thought [Coleman] did a tremendous job. [Freshman forward Kendall Bennett] came in and did a great job … It was all about team rebounding, and it was a team effort.”

BU gathered momentum early in the fourth period, as Bowman made a layup to extend the lead to six. Bryant continued to stay in it, tying the game at 40 with five minutes to go in the quarter. After both teams exchanged baskets once to make it a 42-42 game, the Bearcats scored the next five points, including a three-pointer from sophomore guard Meghan Casey, but the Bulldogs responded with a three-pointer of their own to make it 47-45.

“[Casey] had a huge three,” Shapiro Ord said. “At that point, we’re moving the ball. We’re just being really scrappy, and we just made the extra pass … Anyone at any time can step up.”

With under a minute to go, redshirt sophomore guard Jadyn Weltz made her first basket of the game, a three-pointer, to extend the Bearcats’ lead to five. With 29.7 seconds left, Bowman drained two more free throws to make it a seven-point game. After Bryant made a three-pointer to cut the lead to four, Weltz knocked down four free throws in the final moments to secure a 56-51 victory over Bryant, along with a trip to the AE semifinals for the Bearcats.

“[Weltz] just kept composure,” Shapiro Ord said. “We just out-gritted them.”

Bowman led the way with 24 points, five rebounds and four assists. 10 of her 24 points came from the charity stripe. Fauria added 13 points of her own. Lastly, Weltz scored all seven of her points late in the fourth quarter to ice the game for Binghamton.

“[Bowman] didn’t want to finish,” Shapiro Ord said. “She wanted to keep playing. She needed to step up, and she did.”

Binghamton will take on No.1 Maine on Monday, March 11 — looking to avenge its loss to the Black Bears in the AE quarterfinals last year. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. at Memorial Gymnasium in Orono, Maine.

“We can’t let [Maine junior forward Adrianna Smith and graduate student guard Anne Simon] go off,” Shapiro Ord said. “We’re going to put a game plan together, and we’re gonna get after it.”