Box Score NEW LONDON, N.H. – In a battle for the sixth spot in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) standings, the Norwich University women's basketball fell to Colby-Sawyer College, 52-37, on Wednesday night at the Hogan Sports Center.
Colby-Sawyer improved to 15-7 overall and 5-4 in the GNAC while Norwich's conference win streak ended at two as it fell to 8-14 overall and 4-5 in conference play.
Both teams received concentrated scoring from their respective squads as Norwich garnered all of its points from just four players while five players scored all of the Chargers' points.
Tianna Sugars led the Chargers with her 14th double-double of the season scoring 16 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. Lexie Hamilton finished with nine points and 10 assists. Kristen Donaghey and Joslin Wainwright added 11 points apiece.
Norwich was led by junior guard Riley Bennett's (Hopkinton, N.H.) 15 points. Junior forward Kailynne Frederick (Adams, Mass.) notched her fifth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds while adding three blocks. Junior guard Julia Vigorito (Malden, Mass.) finished with eight points and a team-best 11 rebounds.
Hamilton hit a trey on the opening possession and was followed by a Boucher layup on the next trip down the floor to give the home team a quick 5-0 lead. Norwich got on the board at the 6:29 mark on a good jumper from Frederick. The Cadets battled back and eventually took a 10-8 lead after a Bennett trey with 3:38 on the clock. Colby-Sawyer responded with a 6-2 run to end the frame on top 14-12.
Each team clamped down on the defensive end in the second quarter, which yielded just five made baskets. A Vigorito bucket, two minutes in, tied the game at 14-14. She then scored the next hoop midway through the frame to give Norwich a 16-14 advantage. Seconds later, Sugars converted a three-point play to put the home team back on top 17-16. The teams traded layups in the final two minutes to send the teams into the locker room with the Cadets trailing by one at 19-18.
The Chargers extended their lead in the third quarter to 30-22 before Norwich used a 7-0 spurt, including five points by Bennett, to cut the deficit to a single point. Donaghey nailed a trey as time expired to give Colby-Sawyer a 33-29 after 30 minutes.
Colby-Sawyer inched away from Norwich down the stretch outscoring the Cadets 19-8 in the fourth thanks to a 58.3% shooting performance. The Cadets managed just 23.5% from the floor in the final stanza.
The Cadets will take to the road once again for their next contest when they travel to Suffolk on Saturday for a 1 p.m. tip against the Rams.
