NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Daniel Webster College women's basketball team overcame a horrid second-half shooting performance to pull out its first win of the season, 45-44, against Mitchell College on Saturday afternoon in New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) action at the Yarnall Athletic Center.
The Eagles (1-8 overall, 1-1 NECC) led 32-17 at intermission but missed their first 35 field goal attempts of the second half. Vanessa Bosques finally ended the drought with a three-pointer with 2:27 to play, sparking an 11-2 run to close the game. Daniel Webster capped the stretch and pulled ahead on a put-back by Ashley Giampetruzzi with 2.8 seconds remaining.
Bosques led all scorers with 18 points to along with eight rebounds and three steals. Giampetruzzi and Ashley England added eight points apiece while Mollie Bartles pulled down a game-high nine rebounds. Senior Kaylee Cerruto paced the Mariners (1-7 overall, 1-1 NECC) with 14 points.
The Eagles took it to the Mariners in the first half, racing out to a 9-0 start behind six points from Bosques. Mitchell went 0-for-7 to start the game and didn't get on the scoreboard until a jumper by freshman Savannah Boyle went down with 13:09 to go in the half. The Mariners continued to struggle, however, shooting just 22 percent in the stanza as Daniel Webster led by as many as 18.
Trailing by 15 at the break, Mitchell came out hot to start the second half. The Mariners reeled off a 17-0 run over the opening 5:34 of the stanza to take control. A three-pointer by Cerruto tied the game at 32-32 and a jumper by junior Kate Mulloy gave Mitchell its first lead of the day.
The Mariners failed to capitalize on Daniel Webster's shooting struggles. The Eagles finally scored their first points of the second half on free throws by Natalie Nagle with 7:55 remaining, though it would take nine more misses from the floor before Bosques sank the team's first field goal.
Baskets by Jennifer Fredericks and Nagle made it a one-possession game with 52 seconds to play, and Bosques later cut the margin to 45-44 on a pair of free throws with 22 ticks left on the clock. The Eagles fouled to put the Mariners on the line for the one-and-one, and after a miss on the front end, England found herself with the ball for the go-ahead attempt. Her three-pointer came up short, but Giampetruzzi was under the hoop for the open put-back to put the Eagles in front by one. Mitchell managed only a desperation heave from beyond half-court in the final seconds that came up short.
Daniel Webster shot just 4-for-41 in the second half and finished at 22 percent for the game. The Eagles held a 55-45 advantage on the glass and shot 8-for-11 from the free throw line. Nagle was a spark in the second half, coming off the bench to record four points and five offensive rebounds in 11 minutes.
Mitchell finished at 28 percent for the contest and committed 19 turnovers. Freshman Amanda Garcia contributed 12 points and seven rebounds while Mulloy added 11 points and seven boards.
Mitchell will have a month-long break before returning to the court at Regis College on January 8 at 5:30 p.m. Daniel Webster also returns to action on January 8 at home against Southern Vermont College at 6 p.m.