Collins Scores 24 Points And Grabs Nine Rebounds To Lead Three Players In Double Figures As 15th-Ranked Women's Basketball Claims 19th Win In 21 Outings With 76-63 Northeast-10 Victory Over Pace

February 1, 2006

STONEHILL WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Wednesday, February 1, 2006

Merkert Gymnasium, Easton, Mass.

FINAL:STONEHILL 76, PACE 63

EASTON, Mass.-- Junior Alisha Collins (Port Chester, N.Y.) scored 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead three players in double figures as 15th-ranked Stonehill claimed its 19th win in 21 outings on the season with a 76-63 Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball victory over Pace Wednesday evening at Merkert Gymnasium.

The host Skyhawks (19-2, 14-2 Northeast-10), named as the top-ranked team in NCAA Division II Northeast Regional circles for the third straight week earlier in the day, overcame a late one-point first half deficit by scoring 12 of the final 16 points before intermission in taking a 39-32 lead at the break, as Stonehill blistered the nets at a 57 percent clip in the opening 20 minutes of play. The Skyhawks extended that margin to 13 points early in the second half before the visiting Setters (17-5, 12-5 Northeast-10), who saw their seven-game winning streak come to an end, sliced their deficit back to eight on a pair of occasions. Stonehill regained an 11-point cushion before Pace used a 6-1 run over a two-plus minute stretch to close to within five at 58-53, but the Skyhawks answered with 11 straight points over the next three minutes to take a 16-point edge at 69-53 on a Collins jumper with 4:53 remaining, and Pace got no closer than 11 points in the final minutes.

Freshman Kelsey Simonds (Bridgewater, Mass.) came off the bench to score 14 points and grab six rebounds in the win for Stonehill, which also received 11 points, six assists and three steals from junior Kim Morast (Bridgewater, Mass.). Senior Bethany Roderigue (Winslow, Maine) and junior Caitlin Kennedy (Baldwin, N.Y.) each added nine points for the Skyhawks, who also received six points from junior Tiffany Huggins (Stoughton, Mass.) and five assists and three steals from sophomore Erika Stupinski (Topsham, Maine). The hosts shot an even 50 percent from the field and assisted on 23 of their 29 field goals for the night, as Stonehill held a 41-37 rebounding edge and a 16-10 scoring advantage at the foul line to claim their 15th win in 19 series meetings with Pace.

Senior Andrea Padelsky (Lebanon, Pa.) led Pace in the scoring column with 17 points (including four three-pointers), while grabbing five rebounds, while junior Ashley Wallace (Oswego, N.Y.) added 15 points and six boards for the Setters, who also received nine points and three steals from sophomore Stephanie Klingele (Staten Island, N.Y.). Senior Maria Brown (Frederick, Md.) added eight points for the visitors, who shot 35 percent from the field and canned seven three-pointers but were hurt by 20 turnovers, including 16 Stonehill steals.

Stonehill travels to Albany, N.Y. on Saturday afternoon to take on Saint Rose in a Northeast-10 outing that begins at 1:30 p.m., while Pace hosts Bentley in a Northeast-10 match-up on Saturday afternoon in Pleasantville, N.Y. that also begins at 1:30 p.m.