BEVERLY, Mass. – Senior captain Amber Litwinko (Berlin, Conn.) scored a career-high 30 points to propel the Nichols College women's basketball team to an 81-73 overtime win at Endicott College Tuesday night in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) women's basketball action at MacDonald Gymnasium.
Senior captain Alexis Wegrzynek (Wilbraham, Mass.) filled the stat sheet with 13 points, 11 rebounds, five steals, and a pair of dimes as the Bison (6-16, 3-12 CCC) outscored the Gulls 19-11 in overtime. Freshman Brooke Packard (Dudley, Mass.) knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with 13 points while senior Sarah Whitestone (Dalton, Mass.) recorded 12 points.
Endicott freshman Hannah Shaw (Bar Harbor, Maine) matched the program record for points in a game with 31 in the loss, which was their first to the Bison since 2009. She also pulled down 11 rebounds and tallied six steals.
The Bison shot 50 percent from the field (27-of-54) – including 45 percent from behind the arc – and made 22 of their 35 free throws. The Gulls struggled from both long-range (23 percent) and the charity stripe (38 percent). Despite their struggles shooting the basketball, the Gulls did force 23 turnovers as both Shaw and junior Kelsey Cuddy (Madison, Conn.) recorded six steals; overall, they scored 23 points off turnovers.
Nichols was 4-of-8 from downtown in the first half – sparked by a pair of treys from Packard – while Litwinko's 13 points helped Nichols take a three-point lead to the locker room (32-29). Shaw paced Endicott with 13 points. Shaw went 6-of-8 from the field while Litwinko went 5-of-8. Cuddy claimed five steals and three boards while Litwinko and Wegrzynek each recorded three steals.
Endicott banged in 42 percent of its shot in the second half, led by Shaw's 6-of-9 shooting performance over the final 20 minutes. Nichols, meanwhile, canned 48 percent of its attempts. Shaw led all scorers in the half with 12 points while Cuddy followed with 10. Senior Kayleen Whall (Foxboro, Mass.) posted six boards for the Gulls while Litwinko and Wegrzynek also followed with six rebounds for Nichols.
The Gulls received key baskets from Shaw on second-chance opportunities down the stretch to help force the extra session. With seconds on the clock and Endicott down one, senior Katelyn Wright (Sudbury, Mass.) made a layup as time expired to force overtime.
Litwinko and Whitestone scored eight and seven points in the extra frame, respectively. The Bison made 13-of-18 from the line in OT as Litwinko (6-of-6), Whitestone (5-of-6), and Wegrzynek (2-of-2) all stepped up to seal the win.
The Bison play at UNE Saturday at 3 p.m. The Gulls play at Curry Saturday at 1 p.m.