Hot second-half leads Chieftains to two-game swing win over Ravens

EASTON, Mass. (February 12, 2005) - Stonehill College used a big second-half surge in posting a 68-59 victory over Franklin Pierce in a key Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball contest at Merkert Gymnasium this afternoon.

Stonehill hit 69-percent (20-29) of its shots from the field in the second-half and an early charge turned a two-point (26-24) halftime lead into a 15-point (44-29) advantage with 12:28 to play, from which Franklin Pierce was unable to recover.

The win moves Stonehill into a tie with Franklin Pierce for eighth place in the NE-10 standings, but more importantly gives the Chieftains the head-to-head tiebreaker for the final home seed in the first round of the Conference Tournament at the end of the month.

Sophomore Alisha Collins (Port Chester, N.Y./Trinity Catholic) led four Stonehill players in double-figures with 16 points as she hit five-of-seven from the field and converted 6-of-7 free-throw attempts. She also registered four rebounds and two assists. Senior Rachael Wile (Newburyport, Mass./Newburyport) added 14 points on 6-8 shooting from the field, while sophomore Kim Morast (Bridgewater, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) finished with ten points, five rebounds and six assists. Sophomore Caitlin Kennedy (Baldwin, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) chipped in 11 points and three boards in 17 minutes off the bench.      

Junior captain Heather Jacobs (Stoughton, Mass./Stoughton) led Franklin Pierce with 23 points (one shy of her career-high), on 9-15 shooting from the field, including 3-4 from three-point range, and ten rebounds for her second career double-double. She also dished three assists.

Sophomore Danielle D'Ettorre (Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario/St. Mary's) added 11 points, seven rebounds (four offensive) and three assists, while classmate Mollie Stelmack (New Westminster, British Columbia/New Westminster) registered 11 points, four boards, two assists and two steals.

Franklin Pierce charged out of the gates and took a 10-2 lead 6:45 into the game after a Stelmack three-pointer. The Ravens lead was nine (13-4) after another Stelmack three, two minutes later, but an 8-2 Stonehill run to close out the stanza gave the Chieftains a two-point edge heading into the locker room.

Franklin Pierce senior CiCi Williams (Boston, Mass./East Boston) scored a lay-up to open the second half and knot the score, but Stonehill embarked upon an 18-3 run to take control of the game and open a 15-point lead (44-29) with 12:28 to play. Kennedy netted eight points during that span.

The Ravens drew within six points on three occasions down the stretch, but Stonehill had an answer for every charge and regained a 13-point lead (64-51) after a Stupinski lay-up with 2:15 to play that iced the game. 

Franklin Pierce (12-11, 9-10 NE-10) returns to action on Wednesday when it hosts No. 12 Merrimack College at 5:30 p.m. Stonehill (13-11, 9-10 NE-10) visits Southern New Hampshire University on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

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