FINAL SCORE: Vermont 67, Purdue 59
WEST LAFAYETTE, IN. – For the first time in program history, Vermont (25-11, 12-4 AE) punched its ticket to the WNIT Fab Four, coming out with a victory against Purdue (15-19, 5-13 BIG 10) 67-59 on Monday evening at the Mackey Arena. With the victory, the Catamounts collect their first win over a Big 10 team since 2010.
 
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COACH'S QUOTE
"Just watching these young women that I care about play with such confidence, believing in each other and finding a way to win is just incredible," Mayer Head Women's Basketball Coach said. "Our group stays true to who they are, they work hard, they believe in each other and they buy into our system. Our coaching staff did a really good job of scouting and trying to figure out what we were willing to give up and what do we have to take away. Our players did an unbelievable job of buying in and understanding the game plan."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• A pull up mid-range shot from Emma Utterback were the first points of the game, giving the Catamounts an early 2-0 lead with 9:18 to go in the first quarter.
• Following Utterback's opening basket, the Boilmakers dialed up a 13-8 scoring run prior to the first media timeout, earning them a three-point lead, 13-10, with 4:25 to go in the first frame.
• Bella Vito cashed her second basket of the game coming out of the timeout, making her floating jump shot in the paint after corralling Andjela Matic' bounce pass. Vermont trailed 13-12 with 2:32 to go in the opening quarter.
• Purdue concluded the first quarter scoring back-to-back buckets, taking a five-point lead into the second frame, 17-12.
• After Purdue's opening basket to kick off scoring in the second frame, Anna Olson responded, converting her layup attempt in the paint, making the score 19-14 in favor of Purdue with 7:44 left to play in the quarter.
• Each team battled back-and-forth for the next four minutes, going on an even 6-6 scoring run before Purdue's Alaina Harper executed her layup attempt to extend the Boilermakers lead to 27-20 with 3:34 left in the second frame.
• Keira Hanson's triple with 2:17 to go in the second brought Vermont within four, 27-23, the Catamount's first three-pointer of the game.
• A layup from Rashunda Jones wrapped up scoring in the first half as Vermont entered halftime behind, 29-23.
• Delaney Richason opened scoring for Vermont to start the third quarter after making her mid-range jump shot to bring the score to 29-25 in favor of Purdue.
• A steal from Vito set up Olson to make her turnaround jump shot on the next possession, bringing the Catamounts within two, 29-27, with 8:36 to go in the third frame.
• Hanson would score the next six points for Vermont after swishing two three-pointers before the third quarter media timeout, putting them within one point, 34-33, with 5:51 of the third quarter remaining.
• The Catamounts regained their lead, 35-34, after Vito made both her free-throws with 4:00 remaining in the quarter.
• Hanson capped off an impressive 8-7 UVM scoring run as time expired in the third quarter, maintaining the Catamounts lead ,43-41, drilling her mid-range second-chance jump shot in the paint with just 0:12 remaining on the clock before entering the final quarter of play.
• Following two made free-throws from Purdue to begin scoring in the fourth quarter, Utterback and Vito took turns scoring layups for Vermont as the Catamounts gained a 47-43 edge with 8:26 of gametime remaining, forcing the Boilermakers to call a timeout and recoup.
• A block from Richason set up Utterback on the other end, scoring her driving layup in the paint, extending the Catamounts lead to 49-43 with 7:50 left to play in the game.
• Vito came in clutch with 6:02 remaining in the fourth after responding to Purdue's slight offensive push by scoring her right-handed layup with less than one second to spare on the shot clock, giving Vermont a 51-47 advantage in the final frame.
• Utterback scored a smooth turnaround jump shot in the paint to extend the Vermont lead to 53-48 with 5:21 to play.
• A clean dish from Utterback set up Olson perfectly in the paint to score her second basket in a 4-0 scoring run led by herself, forcing Purdue to call another timeout with 3:58 remaining in the final quarter. Vermont led 57-50.
• A 5-0 scoring run from Purdue brought the Boilmakers back within two, 57-55, with 2:32 remaining of gametime.
• Coming out of a Vermont timeout, Utterback swished a dagger jump-shot just inside the three-point line in front of the UVM bench to earn the Catamounts a 59-55 lead with 2:08 to play in the final frame.
• Vermont connected on their free throws down the stretch to ice the game and earn a 67-59 victory and punch their ticket into the program's first ever WNIT Fab 4.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Utterback finished with a game-high 20 points on 8-17 shooting from the floor to go along with two rebounds, and a game-high six assists. It's the eighth time this season Utterback has scored 20 or more points in a game.
• Hanson scored 17 points on 6-10 shooting from the floor and 3-4 shooting from long distance. Hanson also corralled a career-high five rebounds to go along with one assist and one block.
• Vito registered 14 points while grabbing a team-high 11 rebounds, the third time this season she has recorded 11 or more rebounds in a single game. Vito recorded her third career double-double against Purdue. Vito also contributed one assist and three steals.
• Olson scored 14 points as well, while adding five rebounds, two assists, and one block.
• Richason held it down defensively for the Catamounts, earning a game-high two blocks against Purdue.
• Vermont shot better in every category against the Boilermakers, shooting 48% (26-of-54) from the floor compared to Purdue's 38% (21-of-56), while shooting 38% (3-of-8) from distance compared to Purdue's 13% (1-of-8) from long range. Vermont went 100% from the free-throw line, shooting 12-12, while Purdue shot 73% (16-of-22) from the free-throw line.
• UVM outrebounded Purdue 34-31.
• Vermont is 22-6 this season when holding opponents to 60 points or less.

UP NEXT
Following their Great 8 victory in the 2024 WNIT Tournament, the Catamounts gear up to face the Saint Louis Billikens at Patrick Gym in the 2024 WNIT Fab 4, the first Fab 4 appearance in both program's Women's Basketball history. The 2024 WNIT Semifinal matchup is scheduled for April 3 with tip-off slated for 6 p.m. Ryan Zimmerman, the voice of Catamounts women's basketball will have the radio call on WVMT. Fans can also catch the action live on ESPN+ with Rob Ryan on the call.
 
Tickets for the semifinal showdown will go on-sale Tuesday. Stay tuned to UVMAthletics.com for updates. The Coaches Circle presented by The Farmer Companies will be open to eligible Victory Club members in the regular season location beginning at 5 p.m.
 
Vermont Federal Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont Women's Basketball