DUDLEY, Mass. – The Curry College women's basketball team traveled to take on the Bison of Nichols College for a Saturday afternoon Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) match-up. Despite leading after each of the first three quarters, the Colonels were downed by a final score of 70-57. With the win, the Bison improve to 4-11 on the year, while moving to 2-5 in the CCC. The Colonels now sit at 4-12 overall, while falling to 2-5 in league play.
The Colonels started hot, doubling up their hosts just five minutes into the action, as freshman Kathryn Dunn (Hanson, Mass.) sank a three-pointer to make the score 12-6. The Bison cut the deficit back down to one possession at 14-11 as Desiree Rivera (Windham, Conn.) converted an and-1, but over the next two minutes, the Colonels controlled the game with a 6-0 run. Despite holding a 20-11 advantage with just 1:40 remaining in the frame, Curry failed to build on their lead, allowing Nichols to close on an 8-0 scoring run to draw the score to 20-19 at the end of the first. This marks the seventh time this season the Colonels have scored 20 or more points in a frame and the first time since the fourth of December. However, Curry has not fared well, moving now to 1-4 in those games.
A basket by Kristyanna Remillard (Abington, Mass.) gave Curry the first points of the second quarter, but a score by Alexis Finnerty (Chester, Conn.) brought the lead back down to just one. After seven more Bison points, the hosts had built a six-point lead at 28-22. The Colonels' offense got back-on-track, however, and retook the lead thanks to a 16-7 run, capped by a jumper from Kirsten Smith (East Bridgewater, Mass.) with just five seconds to play in the half.
The third quarter opened much like the second, as the Bison scored each of the frame's first six points, but momentum swung back to the visitors as Curry accounted for each of the following five scores. With 1:28 remaining on the clock, Rivera sank a pair of free throws to draw the score to 47-46 in favor of Curry, before the teams traded buckets to bring a 50-48 score into the fourth.
The final stanza opened with Nichols retaking the lead thanks to scores by Gina Parmenter (Oxford, Mass.) and Isabella Nerney (Guilford, Conn.). Lillian Gray (Brooksville, Maine) hit a triple on the following possession, though, which gave the lead back to Curry. On the Colonels' following possession, a layup by Dunn brought the score to 55-52. The Bison stayed close, grabbing the lead right back after baskets by Finnerty and Shannon St. Lawrence (Milton, N.H.), but gave it away again thanks to a score by Gina Coote (Dedham, Mass.). Leading by just one with 6:07 left in regulation, though, the Curry scoring went silent. Over the next four minutes, the Bison had stretched out to a 62-57 lead, which forced the Colonels into fouling. The visitors remained hampered by missed field goals (3-21 in the 4th quarter) and flawless free throw shooting by Nichols (6-6 over final six attempts), leading to the hosts locking up a hard-fought 70-57 victory in the CCC.
Dunn turned in another strong performance, contributing season-highs in points (17) and rebounds (14). Katie Smith (East Bridgewater, Mass.) also pitched in a new personal best with eight assists. The Bison were led by Nerney who scored 17 points. Finnerty topped the team with five helpers, while St. Lawrence registered 11 boards. As a team, Nichols out-rebounded their guests by a 57-38 margin while tacking on 24 fast-break points. Additionally, the Colonels did themselves no favors by shooting just 1-9 (11.1%) from the free throw line.
The Colonels will look to rebound as they stay on the road to face Western New England University on Wednesday, January 22 at 6:00 p.m. The Bison will also hit the road, as they look forward to a tilt against the Seahawks of Salve Regina, also on Wednesday, the 22nd. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. Both games are in-conference.
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