Boxscore
COLCHESTER, Vt. – A pair of Alexis Keller free throws with 2:43 to play gave St. Michael's the lead for good on Saturday afternoon as they defeated the Southern Connecticut State University women's basketball team 62-59 in Northeast-10 Conference action at Ross Sports Center. Senior forward Kate Lynch (Rumford, R.I.) led SCSU with 20 points while Logan Pintka of St. Michael's led all scorers with 21. With the loss, SCSU falls to 14-8 (10-7 NE-10) and St. Michael's improves to 13-9 (9-8 NE-10) with the victory.
SCSU opened the game on a 7-2 run over the opening two-and-a-half minutes, which prompted a St. Michael's timeout. Out of the timeout, the Purple Knights would run off the next 11 points of the game en route to a 13-2 run and a 15-9 lead with 14:37 to play in the half. Later on, the Owls would respond with a 15-4 run, featuring scoring from five different players, over the final seven minutes of the half to take a 33-31 lead into the intermission.
For SCSU, senior forward Rochelle Johnson (Norwalk, Conn.) led the way with eight points in the first half. Lynch grabbed a half-high seven rebounds and three other Owls collected five boards apiece as SCSU out-rebounded St. Michael's 27-15 in the first half.
Logan Pintka of St. Michael's led all scorers with 11 points in the opening stanza. Allison Dunn led the Purple Knights with five rebounds in the opening 20 minutes.
St. Michael's opened the second half with seven consecutive points to take a 38-33 lead with 16:40 to play. The two teams would grind it out over the next seven minutes with SCSU eventually taking a 48-46 lead on a pair of free throws by Johnson with 9:22 remaining. The game remained tight the rest of the way, but St. Michael's took the lead for good at 58-56 on a pair of Keller free throws with 2:43 to play. Later, a three-point attempt by senior guard Michelle Martinik (Monroe, Conn.) would not fall with time running down as St. Michael's squeaked out with a 62-59.
Lynch led SCSU on the evening with 20 points on 7-for-17 shooting from the floor. Johnson (12 points), Martinik (11) and senior guard Kaylie Schiavetta (Northport, N.Y.) (10) made it four Owls in double figures. Johnson (11) and Lynch (10) each finished in double digits in rebounding.
For St. Michael's, Pintka notched a game-high 21 points on 7-for-15 from the floor and 7-for-9 from the free throw line. Keller (12 points) and Dunn (11) made it a trio of Purple Knights in double figures. Pintka led St. Michael's with eight rebounds while Amy Pitchers handed out a game-high five assists.
SCSU shot 18-for-64 (28.1%) from the floor, 4-for-18 (22.2%) from three-point range and 19-for-24 (79.2%) from the free-throw line on the evening.
St. Michael's shot 21-for-52 (40.4%) from the field, 1-for-2 (50.0%) from behind the arc and 19-for-21 (90.5%) from the charity stripe.
SCSU wore pink uniforms as part of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's (WBCA) 'Think Pink' program promoting breast cancer awareness. The Owls will also sport the pink jerseys in their next two games: Wednesday, Feb. 13 against Pace and Saturday, Feb. 16 at Bryant.
The Owls return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 13 when they return home to host Pace in a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at Moore Fieldhouse in New Haven, Conn. SCSU Athletics will host its 'Think Pink' Party in conjunction with the game to promote breast cancer awareness. All fans are encouraged to wear pink to the game and the night will feature prizes and promotional giveaways.