MIDDLETOWN, Conn. - The Bowdoin College women's basketball team shook off a shaky first half to dismantle Wesleyan University in the second half of a 78-51 victory in their regular season finale on Saturday. The Polar Bears improve to 20-4 (6-3 NESCAC), secure the third seed for the NESCAC Tournament and will host sixth-seeded Bates in a quarterfinal game next Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
Bowdoin, who outscored Wesleyan 46-18 in the second period, reaches the 20-win plateau for the 10th time in the last 11 years and for the third time in as many seasons under head coach Adrienne Shibles. Jill Henrikson led the Polar Bears with a game-high 21 points, including three three-pointers and a perfect 10-10 effort from the free throw line. Katie Bergeron scored 18 points and grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in the win.
Cardinals raced out to a 19-6 advantage 6:35 into the contest. Senior Erin Gold had 11 of the 16 points and added five more in the period to net 16 in the opening 20 minutes. She was held scoreless in the second half as Bowdoin wasted little time taking momentum away from its host. Bowdoin trailed just 33-32 at halftime as junior Jill Henrikson more than countered Gold's output by tossing in 18 points in the first half, including a 10-for-10 effort at the line.
When Bowdoin opened the second half on a 16-4 tear, the Polar Bears held a 48-37 lead with 15:00 to go and Wesleyan never cut the gap under double-figures. Bowdoin sat ahead, 59-45, before using a 10-0 burst between the 7:32 mark and the 5:12 mark to push the lead to 69-45. Henrikson ended the game with 21 points while Bowdoin senior Katie Bergeron had 18, 12 of them in the second half, along with a game-high 11 rebounds for a double-double. Joining Gold in double-digits for Wesleyan was junior Eileen Gaffney with 14.
Saturday's NESCAC Quarterfinal will mark the third time that Bates and Bowdoin have played this season. The Polar Bears took a 67-61 win at Bates on January 11 before the Bobcats bounced Bowdoin 77-56 in Brunswick on January 22. The teams also played in the quarterfinals in the 2008 NESCAC Tournament with Bowdoin taking a 55-51 win.
