Comeback Falls Short for Women’s Basketball at Colby-Sawyer

NEW LONDON, N.H. – The Mitchell College women's basketball team battled back from a 17-point third quarter deficit to make it a one basket game in the final moments on Saturday afternoon, but the comeback fell short, as Colby-Sawyer College held off the Mariners 52-48 in GNAC action at the David L. Coffin Field House. The Mariners drop to 0-8 in the GNAC play with the loss, while the Chargers improve to 3-5 against conference opponents.

Senior Yasmine Santos (Pawtucket, R.I.) poured in a game-high 19 points and notched her 14th double-double of the season, finishing with 13 rebounds and three steals. Sophomore Jamya Beddoe (New London, Conn.) added 16 points, eight rebounds, and six steals, while senior Lyliana Daly chipped in six points and grabbed a season-high 20 rebounds.

The Mariners got off to a slow start and found themselves down 24-9 with 7:14 remaining in the second quarter when Emma Felker knocked down a three-point shot for the Chargers. Following a timeout, Mitchell regrouped and answered with a 10-0 run over the next six minutes. Colby-Sawyer then stopped the bleeding with another Felker three, and following two free-throws, the Chargers maintained a 10-point edge heading into halftime.

Early in the second half it was all Colby-Sawyer, as the Chargers opened on an 8-2 run, which grew their lead to as large as 17 points with 5:37 left in the third. Again, the Mariners responded, closing the quarter on a three-pointer by Jamya Beddoe, which would again make it a 10-point game heading into the final stanza. The Mariners managed to make it a nine-point game on a Yasmine Santos basket with six minutes left, and Santos followed that up with another jump shot which led to a Colby-Sayer timeout at the 5:24 mark. Coming out of the timeout, Alexia Watson connected on a triple to make it 47-44, and with 3:44 remaining, Beddoe went 1-2 at the line to make it a two-point game. Marissa Holt then made a basket for the Chargers to increase the home lead back to four-points, but Santos converted on a layup with 1:03 on the clock, again trimming the deficit to just two. Unfortunately for Mitchell, this was as close as they would come, as Colby-Sawyer went a perfect 4-4 at the free throw line in the final minute to seal the victory.

Despite owning a 50-37 rebounding advantage, the Mariners were held to just 27% shooting from the floor and went 11-18 from the free-throw line. Each team committed 25 turnovers during the game, yet the Colby-Sawyer bench outscored the Mitchell bench 14-0.

Marissa Holt paced the Chargers with 15 points, while Elyza Mitchell added nine points, 13 rebounds, four blocks, and three steals.

The Mariners (2-14, 0-8 GNAC) will return home for their next game when they host Anna Maria College in the opener of a GNAC doubleheader on Tuesday, January 30th, at 5:00 pm. The Chargers (6-12, 3-5 GNAC) return to action on Tuesday, January 30th, when they play host to Amherst College in non-conference action.