Box Score

DANBURY, CT - The Nichols College women's basketball team, behind balanced scoring and a second half surge, upset Western Connecticut State University in the quarterfinals of the 2008 ECAC Division III New England Women's Basketball Championship at Feldman Arena Wednesday night, 70-65. The team's 21 victories this season ties a school record for wins set by the 1989-90 team.
       

The Bison, 21-7, advance to the semifinals and will face host (3) Fitchburg State College, which defeated (6) Western New England College, 80-55 on Wednesday. Other quarterfinals action included; top seed (1) Coast Guard Academy rolling over (8) Maine Maritime, 74-47 and (4) Endicott squeaking by (5) Suffolk, 61-59.  Coast Guard, the tournament's top seed, is unable to host the weekend's semifinals and championship so the Rams, the highest remaining seed earn hosting duties for the two-day affair.
 

Four players scored in double figures for Nichols with Curtia Humbert (Bridgeport, CT) and Jessica Nelson (North Providence, RI) leading the way with 14 apiece.  MaryLynn Skarzenski (Woodbridge, NJ) and Michele Guerin (Chicopee, MA) chipped in 13 markers each.

The Bison, seeded seventh in the eight-team tournament trailed by as many as seven points, 44-37, with 16:33 remaining in the second half.  They went on a 9-2 run and tied the game for the sixth and final time just 3:30 later, 46-46, following a runner in the lane by Humbert.

The lead changed hands 13 times prior to that point, but the Colonials, 20-7, could not draw any closer than a point on three separate occasions over the final 11:10.  WestConn pulled within one point on a jumper in the lane by Ally Greenwood (East Hartford) with 3:00 left, but would not get that close again.
 

WestConn was led by sophomore Katie Moffo (Columbia, CT) who had 14 points and a team-high nine rebounds.  Greenwood and Jennifer Kancler (Columbia, CT) added 11 points each in the loss.  Junior Stacey Roberts (Windham, CT) was the only other player in double figures with 10 points.