BOX
SCORE
BRUNSWICK, Maine - The Colby College women's basketball team took
a ten point lead at halftime, and held on for a 75-64 win to beat
Bowdoin College in the NESCAC Semifinals at Amherst on Saturday.
The Mules advance to the NESCAC title game and win back-to- back
meetings over the Polar Bears for the first time since the 1992-93
season.
Bowdoin will hope to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament
when the field is announced on Monday.
Neither team was able to open up more than a four point lead in
the early going, and at the midpoint of the first half, Colby held
on to just an 18-15 lead. After forcing a shot clock violation from
the Mules, Bowdoin closed the gap to one point on a nice weak side
rebound and reverse lay-up put-back from Amy Hackett. Colby's
Aarika Ritchie responded with a three from the top of the key to
put the Mules up 21-17.
Colby's lead briefly grew to seven points on a deep Allison
Cappelloni three ball, but Bowdoin responded with a bucket from
Sabrina Cote off an assist by Katie Bergeron. With 4:13 to play in
the first half, Colby's Diana Manduca made a three from the
right corner and took a hard foul. The Mule rookie stood up, went
to the line, and knocked down the free throw to complete a
four-point play and extend the Colby lead to 34-25.
During the last four minutes of the half, it looked as though
Colby's lead would remain at a dozen points, but Hackett
nailed a short jumper at the halftime buzzer to close the gap to
42-32. At the break, Hackett led all players with 12 points for
Bowdoin, while Julianne Kowalski paced the Mules with 10
points.
Colby started the second half with a 14-6 scoring run 7:17 of game
play, taking a commanding 56-38 lead. After a timeout, Bowdoin
forced back-to-back turnovers in the Colby backcourt, and went on a
6-2 scoring run to close the gap to 14 points. With 9:11 remaining,
Caitlin Hynes took a steal at half court the distance for a layup
to close the margin to 58-46. Bowdoin got a pair of blocks on
Colby's next possession, before a score inside by Leah Rubega
brought the Polar Bears within 10 points.
On either side of the six-minute mark, Manduca and Rachael Mack
each made a pair of free throws as Colby started to open back up a
comfortable lead. Despite another score by Hynes for Bowdoin,
Colby's lead sat at 68-53 with 3:57 to play.
Bowdoin tried to rally for a comeback, but ultimately ran out of
time as the game ended with a 75-64 win for the Mules. Manduca
finished the night with 18 points to lead Colby, while Ritchie and
Mack added 15 points apiece. Kowalski had the game's lone
double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in the win. Bowdoin
was led by 18 points from Hackett, while Hynes chipped in with 14
points in the loss.
The win improved Colby's record to 23-3 as the Mules earned
a spot in the NESCAC Championship title game for the first time in
program history. Bowdoin drops to 20-6, as the Polar Bears will be
left to hope for an at-large bid when the NCAA Tournament field is
announce on Monday.
