Late Run Not Enough For WBB at SVC
BENNINGTON, Vt. - The Southern Vermont College women's basketball team earned its second New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) victory in as many games Saturday with a 74-66 win over Mitchell College at the Mountaineer Athletic Center.
Four Mountaineers scored double-digit points in the victory. Joa Claircius led the way with a double-double as she recorded 16 points and 10 rebounds. Sherrita Hall and Kourtney Hewitt finished a rebound short of a double-double. Hall had 13 points while Hewitt finished with 10. SVC's career three-point leader, Alyssa Davis, added to her total with four treys for 12 points.
Freshman Zilka Navarro poured in a game-high 32 points to lead the Mariners, netting 25 of her points in the second half. Junior point guard Kaylee Cerruto had 18 points in the defeat for Mitchell. On the glass, senior Bianca Young had 14 rebounds.
The Mountaineers (3-5 overall, 2-0 NECC) raced out to an 11-0 lead to open the game. SVC continued to increase its lead in the first half, opening up a 17-point advantage with 10 minutes remaining in the stanza. In the second half, Southern Vermont held its largest advantage after a Hewitt layup made the score 45-21.
For the next five minutes the two squads traded baskets back and forth, before Mitchell made its comeback run. Navarro and Cerruto led the comeback for the Mariners as the two combined for 19 points in the final 10 minutes of the game.
Navarro shot 11-for-21 for the contest and went 5-for-9 from three-point range. It marked the second time this season that she has scored in double figures. The last Mitchell women's basketball player to score 30 or more points in a game was Alix O'Neil against Johnson & Wales University on December 4, 2010.
Mitchell (1-7 overall, 0-2 NECC) will next play at Becker College on January 7 at 1 p.m.