EWING, N.J. – Sizzling starts to each of the first two quarters gave the TCNJ women's basketball team all the separation it needed to turn Tuesday's NJAC semifinal against Ramapo into a runaway, a 70-50 rout that sent the top-seeded Lions roaring into the conference title game.
 
Julia Setaro dropped in a game-high 24 points for TCNJ, which led by 16 in the first quarter and by 20 in the first half against the fifth-seeded Roadrunners, who were coming off their first NJAC Tournament win in program history on Saturday. The Lions quickly sent them packing, and it's back to Packer Hall on Friday night as TCNJ plays host to No. 2 New Jersey City – a 61-48 winner over No. 3 Kean – with the NJAC crown and automatic NCAA Tournament bid on the line.
 
FOR THE RECORD

• TCNJ improved to 18-8 overall, while Ramapo ended its season at 16-11

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Lions started out red-hot, making eight of their first 10 shots – including two 3-pointers apiece from Branchizio and Setaro – to open up an 18-7 lead and force an early Ramapo timeout after Branchizio swished a heat-check from the top of the key
• TCNJ continued to pile on, and with a run that extended all the way out to 14-0 the lead ballooned as large as 23-7 on a free throw by Isabella Cafaro with 1:49 to go in the first
• The Roadrunners ended the quarter on a 10-2 run, capped by a buzzer-beating 3 from Jada Thompson, to get within eight (25-17) at the end of the first, but the Lions wasted no time snatching momentum right back with the first 12 points of the second quarter
• Setaro and Natalie Kolb scored on consecutive back-door cuts, then Deiter scored with the left hand and Grace Kowalski banked in a floater. Katie Fricker and Arianna McCleod scored on back-to-back possessions, and the spread swelled to 37-17 before Ramapo finally stopped the bleeding nearly five minutes into the period
• TCNJ went scoreless for almost five minutes after that, but hardly lost any of its advantage and took a 42-24 lead into the break after a three-point play by Setaro on its final possession of the stanza
• Ramapo scored four quick points to open the second half and cut the lead to 42-28, but TCNJ quelled much of the visitors' remaining hopes with a 9-0 run that McCleod polished off with a lay-in to make it a 23-point game with 6:17 left in the third
• The Roadrunners made one last push, closing within 55-44 in the final minute of the period, but Setaro drew a foul and sank both free throws, and the Lions started the fourth on a 10-1 run to put the game well out of reach

FOR THE FOES

• Thompson finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds
• Jackie Ventricelli scored 12 points but was held to 4-of-17 from the field

STANDOUT LIONS

• Setaro was 6-for-17 from the floor but made all nine of her free throws
• Branchizio scored all 10 of her points in the first quarter
• Deiter pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds to go with seven points, three assists, and two blocks
• Fricker (8 points), Isabella Cafaro (7), and McCleod (6 points, 7 rebounds) turned in effective performances off the bench

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• The Lions were all but flawless in the first quarter, shooting 9-for-15 from the field and 4-of-7 from 3-point distance. Branchizio and Setaro each netted 10 points in the first 10 minutes alone
• TCNJ took exceptional care of the ball, committing one lone turnover in the first half while forcing nine from the Roadrunners and converting those into 12 points on the other end
• TCNJ shot 40.3 percent overall and was just 5-for-24 from 3-point range (20.8 percent), but controlled the glass (44-35) and held Ramapo to just 33.9 percent from the field

NOTES

• Setaro surpassed Sue Miller '84, Chris Neibert '93, and Shannon Devitt '21 and moved into sixth on the Lions' all-time scoring list with 1,286 career points; she's just nine away from fourth place
• Setaro needs two 3-pointers to become the second player in program history with 200
• Cafaro and Deiter each reached the 300-point mark for their careers

UP NEXT

• TCNJ takes on familiar nemesis NJCU for all the marbles Friday at 7 p.m. The Gothic Knights have knocked the Lions out of the last three NJAC Tournaments – in the semifinals in 2021, the championship game in 2022, and in an overtime classic in the semifinals a year ago