Providence, R.I.-Sophomore forward Vandell Andrade (Providence, RI) poured in 19 points and was named the Most Outstanding Player as top-seeded Rhode Island College defeated second-seeded Southern Maine, 64-59, in the Championship Game of the 2014 Little East Conference Women's Basketball Tournament on Saturday afternoon at The Murray Center.

Rhode Island College (20-8) will advance to the NCAA Div. III Women's Basketball Tournament for the fourth time in program history and the second time in the last three years. The Anchorwomen will find out their opponent and where they will play when the NCAA announces the 64-team tournament field on Monday, March 3.

With the Rhode Island College men's basketball team also cutting down the nets on Saturday, it marks only the second time in league history that a single institution has won both the Little East Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament Championship (Eastern Connecticut, 1992) in the same year. It also marks just the second time in Rhode Island College history that both the Anchormen and Anchorwomen will be competing in the NCAA Tournament at the same time.

Andrade went 4-for-5 from the floor on Saturday and also went 11-for-12 from the free throw line to go along with six rebounds and three steals. Through the three-game the Little East Conference Tournament, Andrade averaged 18.0 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.7 steals and 2.7 blocks per game, while shooting at a 62 percent (16-for-26) clip from the field and 79 percent (22-for-28) from the charity stripe.

Aside from another monster performance from Andrade, senior guard Stephanie Prusko (Lincoln, RI) finished with 15 points and four assists in the win for Rhode Island College, while senior forward Cara Paladino (Arlington, MA) totaled 14 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks and three steals. Freshman guard Alex Moore (West Newbury, MA) chipped in with six points and four assists.

Senior guard Erin McNamara (West Newbury, MA) led Southern Maine (20-8) with a game-high 23 points to go along with a pair of assists, while junior forward Rebecca Knight (Alfred, ME) chalked up 21 points, five rebounds and two assists. Sophomore forward Megan Pelletier (Winslow, ME) added eight points and three rebounds, while senior guard Mariah Callendar (Portland, ME) contributed three points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.

After Rhode Island College jumped out to an early, 6-2, advantage over the Huskies thanks to a layup from Paladino with 15:58 remaining in the half, Southern Maine bounced back with six unanswered points to take an 8-6 lead at the 13:00 mark. Prusko sank a three-pointer to give RIC a 9-8 lead with 12:06 on the clock, but the Huskies fired back with an 8-3 scoring run to regain the advantage, 16-12, with 9:10 remaining, keyed by five points from McNamara.

However, the Anchorwomen rallied to close out the stanza on a 13-6 scoring run, led by five points from sophomore guard Danielle LeBlanc (Warwick, RI), to head into the intermission on top, 25-22. RIC held Southern Maine to just two field goals over the final 10 and a half minutes of the frame en route to the three-point halftime advantage. The Anchorwomen also forced the Huskies into 12 first-half turnovers.

Throughout the second half, Rhode Island College repeatedly opened its lead up to as many as five, but only to watch Southern Maine answer back on the other end with a basket and make it a one-possession game. With a little under 11 minutes to play in the frame and RIC leading, 38-33, the game was halted for nearly a half hour following a scary moment in which USM sophomore forward Gretchen Anderson (Kittery Point, ME) went down with an injury.

After the extensive delay, the two teams followed with a flurry of baskets on each end before Rhode Island College slowly began to pull away. Moore and Andrade buried back-to-back buckets to put RIC on top, 50-41, with 6:21 on the clock, but the resilient Huskies bounced back to cut the deficit to just two, 52-50, with 3:40 left to play thanks to seven straight points from Knight.

RIC upped its lead to four following a pair of free throws from Andrade with 1:54 on the clock, but McNamara stormed back down the court and drained a deep three-pointer to pull USM within one, 56-55. However, Prusko responded on the other end with a clutch trey of her own with just 58 seconds left to play, giving the Anchorwomen a 59-55 lead.

Prusko's shot proved to be the dagger, as the Huskies couldn't overcome the deficit in the final minute of action, en route to the five-point loss. After shooting just 33 percent (7-for-21) from the floor in the first half, RIC shot at a 58 percent (11-for-19) clip through the final 20 minutes. 

For the game, the Anchorwomen shot 45 percent (18-for-40) from the field, 31 percent (4-for-13) from beyond the three-point arc and 75 percent (24-for-32) from the free throw line.

Meanwhile, Southern Maine shot 42 percent (20-for-48) from the field, 38 percent (3-for-8) from the three-point line and 89 percent (16-for-18) from the charity stripe.

USM held a slight, 30-27, advantage on the glass, but committed 19 turnovers in the loss, compared to just 15 turnovers for RIC. The Anchorwomen also dished out 14 assists as a ream, compared to just eight assists for the Huskies.