Providence, R.I.--Senior forward Devin Hill (Danielson, CT) scored a game-high 17 points in her final game at The Murray Center as the women's basketball team fell to Little East Conference rival Keene State, 54-40, in the regular season finale for both clubs on Saturday afternoon.

The Owls (21-4, 10-4 LEC) opened the game on an 8-0 run over the first 4:21, capped off by an old-fashion three-point play from junior guard Stephanie D'Annolfo (Tyngsborough, MA). The Owls upped their advantage to 10, 12-2, following a layup by sophomore guard Sandi Purcell (Hudson, NH) with 1:21 remaining in the quarter.  The Anchorwomen (7-16, 5-9 LEC) answered, with Hill scoring the final three points of the quarter to send the game into the second stanza with the Anchorwomen trailing, 12-5.

The second quarter started off with each team trading baskets, until a layup from RIC junior guard Meghan Reall (Smithfield, RI) cut the deficit to five, 14-9, with 5:56 left in the half. The Owls used a 10-0 run, capped by a trey from freshman guard Emily McPadden (Tyngsborough, MA), to up their advantage to 15 points with 3:01 remaining in the quarter. Another McPadden three with 47 seconds left in the stanza put KSC up by 17, 30-13, but a late three by Hill sent the game into the halftime break with RIC trailing by 14, 30-16.

RIC shot 26.1 percent (6-for-23) from the field in the half, while the Owls shot 35.7 percent (10-for-28).

The Owls blew open the game early in the third quarter, with a layup by junior forward Sarah Kober (Easthampton, MA) with 5:39 remaining in the third period upping the Owls' advantage to 21, 42-21. Keene continued to increase the lead, using a 7-2 run over the remainder of the quarter to send the game into the final period with RIC trailing by 23, 49-23.

The Owls continued their momentum, building their lead as large as 29, 54-25, following a layup by Kober with 6:50 left in the contest. A Hill jumper trimmed the Keene lead down to 15, 54-39, with 1:23 remaining in the game, but the lead proved to be insurmountable.

RIC shot 29.4 percent (15-for-51) from the field, 13.6 percent (3-for-22) from three-point range and 63.6 percent (7-for-11) from the charity stripe. Hill led all scorers with 17 points, while junior guard Alex Moore (West Newbury, MA) narrowly missed a double-double, scoring nine points and grabbing 10 rebounds.

KSC shot 31.1 percent (19-for-61) from the floor, 26.7 percent (8-for-30) from long range and 61.5 percent (8-for-13) from the free throw line. Purcell led all Owls with 14 points, with Kober posted a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds to go along with two steals.   

In upcoming action, seventh-seeded RIC will travel to second-seeded Keene State in opening round action of the 2016 Little East Conference Women's Basketball Tournament on Tuesday, Feb. 23.