Women's Basketball's Comeback Bid Falls Short As Ducks Fall To Colby 58-48 In Opening Round Of NCAA Tournament

3/4/2011 12:00:00 AM

WAYNE, N.J. (March 4, 2011) – Despite a solid defensive effort and a game-high 16 points from junior forward Victoria Webber, the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team fell to Colby College 58-48 in the opening round of the 2011 NCAA Tournament hosted by William Paterson University at the Pioneers' Rec Center in Wayne, N.J. Making just the second NCAA Tournament appearance in school history after recently capturing their second Empire 8 title, the Ducks finished the season with a 21-7 overall mark – tied for the third most wins in the program history.

Colby junior forward Rachael Mack (Augusta, Maine) opened up scoring at the 18:38 mark, converting one of two from the line, before Webber drew a foul on the other end, knocking down both tries from the charity stripe to put Stevens up 2-1.

Mired in a defensive struggle early, Mules junior guard Aarika Ritchie (Lee, Maine) ducked into the lane for two, notching the games first field-goal nearly five minutes into the contest. Following a Ducks' turnover, junior forward Jill Vaughan (Wareham, Mass.), connected on a layup before a pair of Ritchie free-throws extended the Colby lead to five at 7-2.

Hoping to keep Stevens within striking distance, Webber strung together four-straight points, hitting a runner in the lane and a pair of free-throws to trim the Ducks' deficit to one. Stevens freshman Molly Spadaro then jumped into the passing lane, nabbing a steal and going coast-to-coast, capping off a 6-0 Ducks' rally that resulted in an 8-7 lead and a Colby timeout.

Trailing by one after a Jacky McLaughlin (Medfield, Mass.) jumper at 11:48 put Colby back on top, Stevens senior center Victoria O'Connor reeled off four consecutive points on a pair of free-throws and a jump-hook in the lane to push the Ducks' lead to three. Looking to increase the margin, junior Dawn Garcia pushed the ball into the frontcourt on Stevens' next possession, finding Spadaro on the left wing, who nailed the three to stake the Ducks to a six-point cushion with 8:24 to go in the half.

Needing to stem the Stevens' tide, the Mules rattled off 12 unanswered points over the next five minutes of action to take a 19-15 lead with just over five and a half minutes remaining in the first. Sophomore guard Diana Manduca (Portland, Maine) got the run started with a trey from the left corner before Vaughan connected on a jumper to pull Colby within one. After a Manduca free-throw and a Jayde Bennett (Lynn, Mass.) layup, Vaughan and Ritchie converted on four-straight from the line to cap off the decisive 12-0 rally.

Held without a point since Spadaro's trey, Webber drew a pair of fouls over the next several minutes of action, going 3-for-4 from the stripe to end Stevens' scoring drought and pull the Ducks within three at 21-18. Trying to help the Mules close out the half strong, Ritchie hit a pair of free-throws before back-to-back Manduca and Karlyn Adler (Rye Brook, N.Y.) triples capped off a 20-3 Colby run, as the Mules held Stevens without a field-goal for the final 8:24 of the frame, to take a 29-18 edge into the intermission.

Looking to pick up right where they left off, Manduca drained a jumper from the right elbow coming out of the break, before four-straight McLaughlin points quickly upped the margin to 17 less than three minutes into the second half. Down 19 after a Mack bucket, Garcia went 1-for-2 from the line before Stevens' freshman Lisa Tessitore ended a nearly 12-minute Ducks' field-goal drought with a jumper from the right side. Trailing by 16 after a pair of O'Connor free-throws, Tessitore stepped in for a steal before hitting a layup that suddenly brought Stevens within 14.

Hoping to respond, Ritchie would lay it in for two, momentarily quelling the Ducks' hot-streak, but junior forward Jillian Barrett answered with a big three from the left wing to pull the surging Ducks within 13 with 13:33 on the clock. Still down by 13 with just under 11 minutes left, Garcia hit a three from straight-away, making a 10-point game.

After several scoreless minutes, Colby junior forward Kelly Potvin (Sherborn, Mass.) found space along the left baseline, sticking a jumper to push the lead back to 12. Continuing to hang around by exerting tremendous effort on the defensive end, Stevens found itself down 10 with just under five left after a Paige Armstrong free-throw.

Trying to climb back into the game, Webber converted a three-point point play the old-fashioned way at the 4:04 mark, slicing the Ducks' deficit to single-digits, but a Mack put back after a Colby offensive rebound once again increased the Mules' edge to 11.

Back within nine after a pair of Webber free-throws, Mack had two more second-chance points, cleaning up the glass after her own miss, before Ritchie drove the lane, hitting a runner that made it 53-40 Mules with just 2:06 left on the clock.

Refusing to give-up, Stevens strung together three-straight on a Barrett turnaround coupled with an Armstrong free-throw, but that was as close as the Ducks would get, as Manduca drilled another jumper off a screen to up the margin to 12 with a minute left in regulation.

Webber collected four rebounds to go along with her game-high 16, while O'Connor went 2-for-3 from the field with eight points. Spadaro added six points, while Barrett had five points and five boards. Garcia and Tessitore combined for eight points, six rebounds, and four assists, while senior co-captain Brianne Lavin, donning the Cardinal and Gray for the final time, chipped in with three points.

Manduca led Colby with 13 points, three assists, and two rebounds, while Ritchie added 12 points and seven boards. Mack finished with nine points and a game-high 12 rebounds in the win, while Vaughan and McLaugnlin each added six points.

Stevens, which managed just four field-goals in the first half, finished 13-for-43 from the floor (30.2 percent) and 4-for-15 (26.7 percent) from three-point range in the loss. Colby shot 39.6 percent (19-for-48) for the game, despite going just 3-for-12 from long distance.

The Mules, who had a 22-16 advantage in points in the paint, held a 38-31 advantage on the glass, becoming the first Stevens opponent to outrebound the Ducks this season. Colby also won the turnover battle, forcing 25 Stevens miscues – tied for the second most for the Ducks this season.
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