BIDDEFORD, Maine – The Roger Williams University women's basketball team fell to the University of New England (UNE) on Saturday afternoon on Coach Beaudry's Court in the Harold Alfond Forum, 61-58, in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) play.
 
The Hawks saw three players score 16 points, with Katie Galligan (Pembroke, Mass.), Sophia Coppola (Madison, Conn.) and Chloe Richardson (Norwell, Mass.) each accomplishing the feat. Galligan also added nine rebounds, two assists a block and a steal in the tilt. Richardson went 5-9 from beyond the arch, with three rebounds, and a steal, Coppola had four rebounds and four assists in the game.
 
For UNE, Jordyn Franzen scored 29 points knocking down seven of her 10 shots from distance with five boards, and five assists to go with three steals. Faye Veilleux added 15 points with nine rebounds and five assists, adding two blocks and four steals on the defensive end.
 
The Nor'easters jumped out to a 5-0 lead thanks to back-to-back buckets by Franzen on their opening two possessions.  The Hawks responded with Coppola knocking down a jumper while being fouled and earning a point on the ensuing shot at the line.
 
With the UNE up by four, the Hawks again used a pair of free throws by Coppola and followed with a jumper on the next possession by Galligan, cutting the Nor'easter lead to one. Another three by Franzen, and a following bucket by Sydney Jenisch, put UNE up by six with 2:29 remaining. Elizabeth Dufrane (Falls Church, Va.) responded with a three for the Hawks, but Franzen continued to knock down shots from beyond the arc, hitting another three to extend the lead back to six. Coppola knocked down a shot with to cut the lead to four. A bucket by both teams with under 30 seconds remaining kept the game a four-point lead in favor of the Nor'easters, 21-17.
 
The Hawks were the first to strike in the second quarter, with Richardson hitting a three, shrinking the UNE down to one. Richardson would follow their next trip down the floor with another three, give Roger Williams their first lead of the game, 13:01 into the matchup. Galligan added another bucket for the Hawks to take a four-point advantage their following trip. The Hawks managed to outscore the Nor'easters 20-6 in the quarter taking a 37-27 lead into the half.
 
In the third quarter of action, the Nor'easters scored the first eight points of the frame, before Coppola knocked down a jumper. Richardson then knocked down another three taking a 42-35 advantage. UNE closed out the third quarter with a 7-2 run to take a three-point deficit into the fourth.
 
The Nor'easters again opened up the striking first cutting the deficit back to one. Roger Williams responded with a jumper to extend the lead back out to three, but the Nor'easters took the lead after Franzen scored on back-to-back trips, with a three on the second trip, 51-49.
 
The two teams were level until Galligan knocked down a jumper with 2:24 remaining to give Roger Williams the lead back by two. Franzen knocked down another triple for her 29^th point of the game giving UNE a one-point advantage heading down the stretch. Richardson responded with a three of her own, after the Hawks maintained possession after a miss. Kaylee Bayor then leveled the score at 58-58 with 1:10 remaining.
 
UNE's ensuing possession saw Faye Veilleux drill a three with 16 seconds remaining to give the Nor'easters a three-point lead. The Hawks had two shot attempts, but were unable to get them to fall as the Hawks fell.
 
Roger Williams (15-8, 10-4 CCC), who currently sit fourth in the CCC standings, will host Wentworth on Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 5:30 pm before traveling for their regular season finale on Saturday, Feb. 17 at Nichols.