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BRUNSWICK, Maine - The Bowdoin College women's basketball team got 19 points from Katie Bergeron and held Baruch to a season-low in points in a 67-53 NCAA First-Round victory at Morrell Gymnasium on Friday evening. The Polar Bears (21-6) advance to the second round of the tournament for the tenth straight season- the longest streak of any team in Division III - and will face Western Connecticut State at 7:00 p.m.Tickets will be available at the door beginning at 6:00 p.m.

The Bearcats finish their season with a record of 23-6.

Bowdoin opened a 13-point lead at intermission thanks to sharp outside shooting a 15 first-half points from Katie Bergeron, who connected on 6-8 from the field (including a pair of three-pointers). Tied at 11 in the early going, Bowdoin used a 19-4 run, capped by a Bergeron trifecta, to take a 15-point lead with six minutes left in the half. Monique Salmon's seven points and four assists kept the Bearcats within shooting distance at the break.

Baruch made several attempts to cut into the Bowdoin advantage in the second half, but the Polar Bears answered every rally. The last of which came with six minutes to play when Monique Walker hit a running lay-in to cut the lead to nine points, 56-47. But Caitlin Hynes answered with a three-pointer from the top of the key that sparked a decisive 7-0 spurt for the hosts to put the game out of reach.

Bergeron added seven rebounds and six assists to go with her 19 points. Hynes tossed in 13 while Ellery Gould notched 14 off the bench for the Polar Bears. Leah Rubega grabbed 14 boards to become the program's single-season leader with 281 rebounds on the year. Salmon led the Bearcats with 16 points while Anika Sierk added 10. Despite holding a 46-33 edge in rebounds, the Bearcats shot just 33% from the field in the loss, including 3-12 from three-point range.

Bowdoin will be making their 10th straight appearance in the second round of the NCAA Division III Championship, but the last two have ended with a heartbreaking second-round setback. The Polar Bears lost to Amherst, 61-60, in the second round of the 2008 tourney and suffered a 58-57 loss to Muhlenberg last season.

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Western Connecticut State 59, University of New England 41

BRUNSWICK, Maine - The Western Connecticut State University women's basketball team used a suffocating defensive effort to beat the University of New England, 59-41, in an NCAA First-Round game on Friday at Morrell Gymnasium on the campus of Bowdoin College.

The Colonials improve to 23-5 and advance to Saturday's Second-Round game where they will face the winner of Friday's late game between Bowdoin and Baruch at 7:00 p.m. The Nor'easters end their year with a mark of 23-6.

Both teams struggled offensively in the first half, particularly the Nor'easters, who connected on 1-of-23 shots from the field in the opening stanza. Western Connecticut was able to take advantage courtesy of seven points from Heather Lee and 10 rebounds and four blocks from Melissa Teel. The Colonials scored the first eight points of the game and stretched their lead to as many as 13 points after a Katie Moffo trifecta with a minute left in the period. A free throw from UNE's Margo Russell trimmed the lead to 12 points, 23-11, at the break.

The Nor'easters were able to trim the lead to nine points early in the second half before the Colonials pulled away. Western Conn. led by as many as 21 points en route to the victory.

Michelle Teel grabbed a game-high 19 rebounds for Western Connecticut and blocked seven shots in the win. Lee led all scorers with 14 points while Karli Spear pitched in 11. UNE was led by 10 points from Carrie Bunnell. The 41 points were a season-low for the Nor'easters.