BIDDEFORD, Maine -- The University of New England scored eight unanswered points in the middle of the 4th quarter to gain the edge on Middlebury College and secure a 63-61 women's basketball victory on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 4) at the Harold Alfond Forum.

It was the final non-conference outing for the Nor'easters, who improve to 9-3 with the positive result. The Panthers, who claimed last year's meeting by 16, slip back to 9-2 overall.

The deciding spurt started with an Abby Cavallaro three-pointer at the 5:34 mark, cutting into a 50-46 deficit. A pair of free throws from Kaylee Beyor shifted the hosts in front, and then Faith Connorsbanked a trey from the left wing to make it 54-50. After a Middlebury basket, Jocelyn Chaput put in five straight to set UNE's largest lead (59-52) with 2:44 left.

Reagan McDonald connected from downtown with 2:19 remaining to keep the Panthers in it, and then again with 0:44 to go, but the tying attempt missed with eight ticks on the clock. The Nor'easters gathered the ensuing rebound, and Sadie Nelson added a couple free throws to the cushion (63-58). The visitors got another three-pointer to fall with 0.6 seconds showing to provide the final margin.

Cavallaro topped UNE with 23 points that included a career-high seven triples and all but two of the team's 13 points in the 2nd period. Chaput scored nine in the 4th to end with 15, six boards, and five assists. Nelson added 10 points and Beyor had a team-best eight rebounds.

The Nor'easters converted 17 Middlebury turnovers into 26 points going to the other way, and racked up a 21-point scoring advantage (36-15) from behind the arc.

McDonald paced the Panthers with 19 points, and Betsy Knox went for a double-double of 18 points and 18 caroms. Maya Davis contributed nine points and six rebounds, helping a 46-28 edge on the glass. Middlebury tallied 20 points off its 20 offensive boards.

The spread between the teams peaked at eight (20-12) in the 2nd as the Panthers started towards a 28-22 lead at the midway break. UNE grabbed its first lead since 2-0 at 29-28 early in the 3rd. Knox and Middlebury managed to flip things to 41-36 in the latter stages of the quarter, only to see three-pointers from Cavallaro and Connors bring the Nor'easters right back. The visitors ultimately held a 45-22 cushion through 30 minutes.