POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (January 13, 2017) — Nicole Teta drained a buzzer-beating three to lift the Vassar College women's basketball team (7-8, 4-2 Liberty) over Clarkson University at the Athletics & Fitness Center on Friday, 64-61.
The game-winner capped a 21-point performance by Teta, as she led the Brewers in scoring. Ariella Rosenthal added 20 points, while Sophie Nick finished with nine points and a game-best 16 boards, as the Brewers out-rebounded the Golden Knights, 53-39.
The Brewers shot 29 percent from the floor, 41 percent (7-of-17) from three and 74 percent from the line, while holding their visitors to 39, 18 (2-of-11) and 65 percent, respectively.
Devin Sorell led Clarkson with 18 points, Alyssia Marsal had 14 and Madison Shea added 10.
In front of an Alumni Weekend home crowd, the Brewers quickly jumped out to a 12-4 lead. Rosenthal highlighted the surge with a trifecta of baskets, while Kim Romanoff assisted on a pair of buckets before capping the burst with a layup herself.
The Golden Knights then bridged a 15-0 run over the first and second quarters to take a 19-12 advantage with 9:09 to go. Sorell connected on a hoop-and-harm before capping the spurt with a triple.
Vassar pulled as close as two, 29-27, thanks to a 9-2 run, before Clarkson carried a 35-32 edge into the break.
The Brewers and Golden Knights went tit-for-tat to start the second half before Teta singlehandedly used a 7-0 run, featuring a jumper, a pair of free throws and a three-pointer, to flip the lead, 47-44.
Clarkson scored eight of the next 10 for a 52-49 advantage, its final lead of the game. Isa Peczuh drained her second triple of the night on the other end to knot it up.
The game featured three ties thereafter, including at the 18-second mark when Sorell drained three from the charity stripe to knot it at 61.
"The game plan, I knew that they thought that the ball was going to go into Ariella's hands, and I just wanted her to create a distraction going to the rim," coach Candice Brown said. "Nicole was pretty wide open outside on a three. The play was executed just to a tee, and so I was happy that it went down."
With the clock winding down, Teta connected on the game-winning triple to give the Brewers their fourth win in five games.
"So often we've been on the other end, losing by two, losing by three, losing by four," Brown said. "It definitely feels good to be on the winning end. I was happy that Nicole Teta was ready, her feet were set and she drained that three."
Vassar concludes Alumni Weekend on Saturday, Jan. 14, welcoming St. Lawrence University to the Athletics & Fitness Center for a 2 p.m. tilt.
"We can't allow St. Lawrence to take three-pointers from the outside," Brown said. "They're a very good three-point shooting team, and so we have to play a solid game on the defensive end and then we have to execute on the offensive end."
—VASSAR—