LEWISTON, Maine -- First-year Mya Hicks scored a season-high 12 points, senior captain Davina Kabantu grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds, and the Bates women's basketball team used a big third quarter to defeat the University of Southern Maine 67-60 Tuesday night at Alumni Gym. 

The Bobcats (4-0) are off to their best start since the 2004-05 season. They defeated the Huskies (1-4) for the third straight year and for the sixth time in their last seven tries. 

Bates was down 31-27 at halftime before outscoring the Huskies 20-9 in the third quarter to take command of the game.

Senior Alyson Kennedy (Oklahoma City, Okla.) got the offense going in the third quarter with a jumper in the lane to trim the deficit to two with 9:02 left. Sophomore Elsa Daulerio (Harpswell, Maine) split a pair of free throws and Kennedy gave Bates the lead for good with 6:41 to go in the third on a layup. 

With the score 37-36 in favor of the Bobcats, junior Alexandra Long (Newtown, Pa.) drilled a three to extend the lead to four with 4:20 on the clock. A Hicks three-pointer with 1:25 remaining in the quarter put the Bobcats up 45-37.

The Huskies did not get closer than to within five points of Bates down the stretch. 

Nine different players scored points for Bates. Hicks (Ann Arbor, Mich.) shot 3-6 from the floor and finished 2-4 from three-point range to pace the Bobcats. Long and Kennedy finished with 10 points apiece, as Long finished 4-6 from the field and blocked three shots. Daulerio scored nine points on 4-7 shooting and blocked a game-high four shots. First-year Sarah Hughes (Rumson, N.J.) tallied eight points and dished out a team-high three assists.

In addition to her work on the glass, Kabantu (Portland, Maine) recorded eight points and a game-high three steals.

Tara Flanders paced the Huskies with 15 points and nine rebounds. Mackenzie Roderick added 12 points on 5-6 shooting,

Turnovers turned out to be the difference in the game. The Huskies turned the ball over 15 times while the Bobcats only turned it over seven times. Bates scored 14 points off turnovers and USM scored just two. 

The Huskies led by as many as five near the end of the second quarter and the Bobcats opened up a 13-point lead early in the fourth quarter. The game featured one tie and four lead changes.

Bates is back in action this Sunday at 3pm when the Bobcats host WPI.