BOX
SCORE
BRUNSWICK, Maine - The top-seeded Bowdoin College women's
basketball team never trailed in an 85-52 victory over Williams in
the quarterfinal round of the NESCAC Tournament on Saturday. The
Polar Bears (21-4) will host the NESCAC Semifinals and Championship
next Saturday and Sunday and will play fifth-seeded Trinity at 2:00
p.m. on February 28. The other semifinal game will feature
second-seeded Amherst and third-seeded Tufts at 4:00 p.m. Williams
ends their season with a record of 8-17.
Bowdoin maintained a single-digit lead for the majority of the
first half, and held a seven-point lead with 6:15 remaining in the
period. Sparked by a pair of lay-ups by Leah Rubega and five
straight points from Maria Noucas, the Polar Bears rolled off a
19-2 run over a six-minute span to take a commanding 44-24 lead
with under a minute to play in the frame. A five-point spurt before
the break, including a three-pointer by Williams' Jill Greenberg
trimmed the Bowdoin lead to 44-27 at the half.
Consecutive three-pointers from Jill Henrikson and Katie Bergeron
quickly pushed the lead to 25 points early in the second half and
the Polar Bears led by as many as 40 points in the second stanza en
route to the 33-point win.
Bowdoin dominated the rebounding battle, holding a 58-34 edge on
the boards, including a 28-13 advantage on the offensive glass. The
Polar Bears scored 32 second-chance points in the contest.
Every active Polar Bear scored, led by Henrikson's 15 with five
rebounds and four assists. Leah Rubega notched 12 points and seven
rebounds while Maria Noucas had 11 points, nine assists and three
steals without a single turnover at the point for Bowdoin. Williams
was led by 13 points apiece from Chessie Jackson and Greenberg.
Saturday's contest marked the 14th consecutive victory for Bowdoin
over Williams dating back to 2001. With the victory, the Polar
Bears improve to 28-0 all-time in NCAA and NESCAC Tournament games
at Morrell Gymnasium. Ticket information for the NESCAC
Championship will be announced next week.
