Danbury, Conn. - The Trinity College Bantams dropped a 56-55 decision against the Maine Maritime Academy Mariners in the opening round of the Hat City Women's Basketball Classic this evening at Feldman Arena.  Trinity falls to 7-2 and will face the Newbury College Nighthawks in the consolation game tomorrow at 2 p.m.  The Mariners improve to 5-4 and will play the host Western Connecticut State University Colonials in the championship game tomorrow at 4 p.m.  Bantam junior forward Erin Cunningham (Wilton, Conn.) had 14 points, 11 rebounds, and two blocked shots, while junior forward Alayne Felix (Mahopac, N.Y.) led all scorers with 21 points and added eight boards for Maine Maritime.  Trinity led for the vast majority of the game, but the Mariners scored 11 points in a row late in the fourth quarter and held on.

Trinity took a 3-2 lead on the first of Cunningham's four three-pointers 1:17 into the first quarter, and received points from six different players to lead, 17-12, after 10 minutes of play.  Another Cunningham trey gave the Bantams a double-digit advantage at 31-19 with just under four minutes remaining in the first half, and Trinity held a 35-28 lead at halftime.  Junior guard Becky Riefler (Garden City, N.Y.) came off the bench to score a team-high eight points in the first two quarters for the Bantams.

Trinity led by 11 points at 47-36 with 1:12 remaining in the third quarter on yet another long ball by Cunningham, but Mariner sophomore Chloe Smedley (York, Maine) scored the final five points before the final break to make the score, 47-42, with 10 minutes left to play.  Trinity junior center Courtney Erickson (Everett, Mass.) scored the first five Trinity points of the fourth frame to give the Bantams a 52-45 advantage with 7:34 on the clock, but Smedley and Felix combined to score the game's next 10 points including the go-ahead layup by Felix with 2:12 left.  After a free throw by Maine Maritime sophomore guard Melinda Ogden (Searsport, Maine) with 15 seconds remaining gave the Mariners a 56-52 lead, junior guard Erica Junquet (Monroe, N.J.) ended the Bantam scoring drought with a three-pointer from the left wing but it left Trinity a point shy as time expired.

Erickson joined Cunningham in double figures in scoring with 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Junquet scored 10 points.  Smedley came off the bench to score 11 points and sophomore guard Eryn Doiron (Wilton, Maine) dished five assists for Maine Maritime.  Trinity shot 32.8 percent from the field for the game and made just three field goals in 17 attempts in the fourth quarter.  Trinity fails to advance to a second-straight Hat City Classic Finals, having posted a 68-52 win over Wheaton College in 2016 before losing to Western Connecticut in the finals, 70-63.