Women's Basketball 3/1/2014 4:26:00 PM

Women's Basketball falls to UNE in CCC Championship

Box Score BIDDEFORD, Maine - The Roger Williams University Women's Basketball team's first appearance in the Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship Game ended in disappointing fashion, as the Hawks were downed 50-61 by the University of New England.

The Nor'Easters were able to take a quick 2-0 lead, winning the tip and getting a bucket from Alicia Brown (Greenland, N.H.). A Hawk turnover on the other end and a pair of free throws for Kelly Coleman (Portland, Conn.) of UNE put them up by four.

The Hawks struggled to get their offense going in the first three minutes of the game thanks to strong Nor'Easter defense. UNE jumped out to an 8-0 lead to start the contest before RWU called a 30-second timeout to regroup.

It would not be until the 14:30 mark before the Hawks notched their first basket with Amanda Keane (Wilmington, Mass.) putting in a short shot in the paint. After an Ari Renwick (Westwood, Mass.) steal, Keane scored again on a putback on a missed three by Angelica Ariola (Prospect, Conn.).

However, back-to-back three pointers by Lauren Hayden (Chantilly, Va.) and Sadie DiPietro (South Portland, Maine) put the Hawks in a 4-16 deficit. After a pair of Ariola free throws, RWU struggled to maintain momentum, turning the ball over on three straight possessions.

Shannon Cullen (Walpole, Mass.) was able to find a cutting Keane in the paint for the Hawks' next basket, but the Hawks still trailed by 14 (8-22). RWU later found themselves in a 10-28 hole with 5:25 left to play in the half on an Alanna Vose (Cushing, Maine) trey.

Ariola connected on a pair of free throws with 2.7 seconds remaining to make it a 19-37 game going into halftime.

Roger Williams struggled shooting the ball throughout the first half, connecting on only 7-of-32 shots in the period for a season-worst .219 field goal percentage in a half. Conversely, the Nor'Easters went 13-of-22 from the field, shooting at nearly 60% in the period.

Coleman began the second half with a layup for UNE, but Renwick responded with a three from the top of the key. Ariola was later able to trim the deficit to 16 with a three-pointer from the left side, but the Hawks still were still looking up. Vose hit her third three of the game with 15:17 to play to make it a 47-29, forcing a Hawk timeout.

Alicia Brown hit a fadeaway jumper on an inbound pass by Vose with the shot clock running down to put the Nor'Easters back up by 20 (49-29) with 14:23 to play.

The Hawks were able to hold the Nor'Easters scoreless over a four-minute stretch halfway through the second half but could not bring the game closer than 17. Coleman ended the drought for UNE with a layup at the 7:42 mark to make it 53-34 in favor of the home team.

Despite the large deficit at that point, the Hawks continued to fight, scoring eight straight points capped off by a baseline driving layup by Alyssa Otis (Torrington, Conn.) to pull within 11 with 5:03 left to play. Otis would later get fouled at the 2:50 mark and sink one of two free throws to bring the Hawks within single digits for the first time since 12:49 in the first half, making it 44-53. RWU was able to bring it within seven with under a minute to play, but the Nor'Easters did the work at the free throw line to clinch its third straight CCC Championship.

Coleman finished with 18 points and nine rebounds for the Nor'Easters, while Vose added 11 points and two assists off the bench. Meghan Gribbin (Windham, Maine) scored ten with four assists as well.

Ariola led the Hawks with 12 points and three rebounds before fouling out. Keane added 11 points and six boards off the bench, while Bovee had eight points and nine rebounds.

UNE (26-2) clinches an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament, while Roger Williams (22-5) will await to see if its body of work is good enough to grab an at-large bid.

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