Rubega and Hynes Dominate in Victory Over Southern Maine

BOX SCORE

GORHAM, Maine - Seniors Caitlin Hynes and Leah Rubega combined for 32 points and 21 rebounds on 66% (14-21) shooting to lead the seventh-ranked Bowdoin College women's basketball team to a 60-47 win over 17th-ranked Southern Maine on Tuesday evening. The victory is the first in Gorham for the Polar Bears (4-0) since December of 2003, the year the squad reach the Division III title game.

Bowdoin's defense clamped down on the Huskies in the opening half, forcing nine turnovers and holding USM to 30% shooting from the field, including 1-of-8 from beyond the arc. The Polar Bears never trailed, getting started with a three-pointer from Kaitlin Donahoe in her first career start and jumping out to a 10-2 edge five minutes in. The Polar Bears lead bounced between four and eight points for the remainder of the half, but was trimmed to three points after a three-pointer from USM's Curran Leighton with under a minute to play. But a jumper by Colleen Sweeney and a buzzer-beater by Alexa Barry extended the lead to seven points, 25-18, at the break.

Southern Maine was able close to within two points after Nicole Paradis nailed a lay-in to cap an 8-2 Husky run with 11:30 to go. But Bowdoin responded quickly with a bucket by Sabrina Cote and a trifecta from Ellery Gould to push the lead back to seven points. The Polar Bears poured it on from there, pushing the lead into double-digits for the final five minutes of play.

On a night when neither team shot particularly well, the combination of Hynes (20 points, eight rebounds) and Rubega (12 points, 13 rebounds) proved lethal for the Polar Bears. Bowdoin held a 39-31 edge on the boards, but grabbed 16 offensive rebounds. The Polar Bears went 10-deep, as nine different players scored, including Sweeney's nine off the bench. Bowdoin's bench outscored USM's 18-4 for the night.

Paradis led Southern Maine with 12 points while Haley Johnson chipped in 10.

Bowdoin had lost four of their last five meetings against their rivals from Gorham, and had not beaten them in Hill Gymnasium since December 2, 2003. Overall, the Polar Bears have a 9-4 mark against Southern Maine since 2000.