NASHUA, N.H. — Southern Vermont College closed out an 89-85 victory at Daniel Webster College Wednesday night in New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) women's basketball action at Vagge Gymnasium.
The win gives SVC an 11-3 record in the conference and 13-8 overall mark, ensuring the Mountaineers will finish the regular season with a winning percentage above .500 for the first time since the team's inaugural 1993-94 season. Daniel Webster falls to 3-17 on the year, 3-10 in league play.
Mountaineer junior captain Amber Flagg (Windsor, Connecticut) scored a team-best 23 points while adding eight rebounds and three assists to her line. Classmate Sarah McDonald (Cohoes, New York) pulled down a season-high 12 rebounds to go with 18 points for her second double-double of the year, and fellow junior Turquoia Johnson (Montgomery Village, Maryland) added 17 points and seven rebounds in reserve time.
Sophomore Kayla Free (Quincy, Massachusetts) registered a game-best 29 points for the Eagles while grabbing seven boards, and junior Natalie Nagle (Dolgeville, New York) scored eight points to go with her game-high 13 rebounds. Freshman Natasha Santana (Lawrence, Massachusetts) added 11 points, three rebounds and two steals in the effort.
SVC recorded a 44.2 percent clip from the floor (34-77) while Daniel Webster edged the visitors with a 45.5 field goal percentage (35-77). The Mountaineers controlled the boards with a 54-38 rebound advantage and outscored DWC 27-16 on second-chance points. SVC also owned a 46-30 advantage on points from the paint in the victory.
The opening 10 minutes of action was tight with neither team able to take a sizable lead until SVC scored seven unanswered points to go up 26-19. Three-pointers kept the Eagles close as the hosts hit six baskets from beyond the arc in the first period. DWC closed out the last 1:11 of the half with six straight points before a McDonald layup right before the buzzer sent the game to the intermission with Southern Vermont on top 50-46.
The Mountaineer lead fluctuated throughout the second half as Daniel Webster erased a pair of double-digit deficits. SVC went up by 12 (63-51) on a McDonald basket at the 14:30 mark, but the Eagles cut the difference to 66-64 with a steady run. Over the next five minutes, Southern Vermont once again pulled away to take its biggest advantage of the night at 80-66 with 5:54 left on the clock.
DWC again answered with nine straight points to make it a one-possession game (84-81) at the 1:28 mark. The Eagles were forced to send Southern Vermont to the line as time waned, and Daniel Webster was able to make the most of SVC misses to make it an 86-85 ballgame with 17 ticks to go. After Flagg knocked down a pair from the charity stripe, DWC put up a game-tying three to no avail, and a final free throw sealed the victory for the Mountaineers.
Southern Vermont returns to action on Saturday with a 1 p.m. home game against Wheelock College; SVC will also be celebrating the Play 4Kay initiative to support the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. Daniel Webster next visits Newbury College on Saturday for a 2 p.m. NECC matchup.