NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College women's basketball team outscored Becker College 20-9 over the final 6:15 of Saturday's New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) regular season finale to secure a 63-57 victory at the Yarnall Athletic Center.
The win clinched a postseason berth for the Mariners (8-16 overall, 7-11 NECC), who will be making their fourth straight appearance in the NECC Championship. Becker (8-17 overall, 8-10 NECC) will also be one of the seven teams competing at the tournament, which begins with quarterfinal games on February 21. Seeding for the 2012 NECC Championship will be announced by the conference on Sunday evening.
Junior Kaylee Cerruto led all scorers with 18 points to fuel the Mitchell offense. Freshmen Sheanna James and Hannah Smith also finished in double figures with 16 and 11 points, respectively. James added seven steals, six rebounds and four assists while Smith grabbed eight rebounds.
Tatiana Mojica paced the Hawks with 17 points and eight rebounds while Haley Ooms nearly logged a triple-double with 14 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Michelle Griczika added nine points and Kristina Desnoyers contributed seven points and nine boards.
The lead changed hands five times in what was a closely-contested first half. The Hawks took their biggest lead of the stanza on a jumper by Ooms that made it 17-9 with 9:18 to go, but the Mariners responded with nine straight points to vault back ahead. Freshman Zilka Navarro capped the stretch with a three-pointer to put Mitchell in front 18-17 with 6:21 remaining.
Becker scored the final six points of the half—four of which came from Jacqueline Chila—to take a 31-29 lead into the locker room at the break. Mojica had 13 points and six rebounds to lead the Hawks while James had nine points to pace the Mariners.
The second half was just as close, as neither side led by more than four until a lay-up by Cerruto put the Mariners ahead 43-38 with 8:55 to play. Things quickly changed, however, as Becker heated up and Mitchell suddenly went cold. The Hawks seized control with 10 unanswered points over the next 2:40 in a spurt that was bookended by a pair of baskets by Desnoyers. The Mariners, who missed six straight shots during the stretch, called timeout to regroup.
Mitchell responded with six straight points to regain the lead. Senior Bianca Young hadn't made a shot all day before getting into the lane for a lay-up to provide the spark. Navarro later followed with a jumper to cut the deficit to one, and Cerruto put Mitchell back on top with a three-pointer that made it 50-48 with 4:32 to go.
Becker didn't go away, tying the game twice more before a three-pointer by Smith snapped a 52-52 tie and put Mitchell in front for good with 2:46 remaining. She then added a lay-up to extend the lead to five, and the Mariners closed out the win by going 6-for-6 from the free throw line in the final 1:45.
Becker finished with a better team shooting percentage (38 percent) and held the rebounding edge (51-42) but turned the ball over 28 times. The Mariners capitalized on the miscues and finished with a 29-14 advantage in points off turnovers.
Young, playing in the final home game of her career, struggled offensively but made up for it with a game-high 13 rebounds and three steals. Prior to the game, she was honored in a special senior day ceremony.