WBB Holds Off Late Push to Beat SVC

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College women's basketball team held off a late charge from Southern Vermont College on Thursday afternoon to post a 66-63 victory in New England Collegiate Conference action at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

Freshman Zilka Navarro led all scorers with 23 points as the Mariners (3-8 overall, 2-3 NECC) picked up their second straight conference victory. Classmate Sheanna James added 14 points and senior Bianca Young posted her third double-double of the season with 13 points and 11 rebounds.

Four Mountaineers scored in double figures for a squad that went only six deep. Ashliy Veliz came off the bench to record 13 points and 11 rebounds while Joa Claircius also notched a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 17 boards.

James kick-started the Mitchell offense by scoring the team's first six points, and freshman Hannah Smith followed by hitting a three-pointer to put the Mariners up 9-6 in the opening minutes. Mitchell built the lead to as many as 13 points in the stanza before taking a 38-28 lead into the locker room at the break. Navarro and James combined for 23 points in the opening half while Veliz paced the Mountaineers (3-8 overall, 2-2 NECC) with seven.

The Mariners saw their 10-point margin evaporate over the first 10 minutes of the second half. Southern Vermont grabbed its first lead of the stanza at 50-49 on a lay-up by Veliz with 9:07 remaining and went up by three on the following possession thanks to a bucket by Sherrita Hall.

A lay-up by Navarro put the Mariners back ahead at 55-54 with 7:04 to go, and Southern Vermont suddenly found itself struggling on the offensive end. The Mountaineers missed their next 10 shots—including five on a single possession—but stayed in the game with solid defense. Mitchell failed to take advantage during the stretch and increased the lead to only four.

Southern Vermont cut the deficit to two on a basket by Veliz and later took the lead once again following a three-pointer by Dayna Carpenter that made it 59-58 with 3:12 to play. Mitchell responded with six straight points to go back up by five at 64-59 with 50 ticks left on the clock.

The Mariners failed to close the game out from the free throw line, missing four straight attempts to allow Southern Vermont a final chance to complete the comeback. Claircius cut the margin to three with a lay-in with 40 seconds to play, and she later followed with a drive into the paint for a bucket and foul with eight seconds to go. She missed the ensuing game-tying free throw, and junior Suzie Barbosa pulled down the rebound for the Mariners.

Barbosa was quickly fouled and sank both freebies to put Mitchell ahead by three at 66-63. Southern Vermont had one final chance to tie the game in the final seconds, but a three-pointer by Claircius at the buzzer was off the mark.

Southern Vermont held a commanding 66-47 advantage on the glass but committed 29 turnovers. Mitchell capitalized on those miscues and racked up a 27-9 edge in points off turnovers.

Mitchell will next play at Bay Path College on Saturday, January 14 at 5 p.m.