BRUNSWICK, Maine — The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's basketball team was unable to overcome a big third quarter by host No. 6 Bowdoin College in a 64-44 loss this evening at Morrell Gymnasium in Brunswick, Maine.
The Lyons slip to 3-8 on the season, while the Polar Bears, who are ranked in the most recent Women's Basketball Coaches Association national poll, improve to 9-1.
Following an evenly played first half, Bowdoin dominated the third quarter by a 23-10 count that Wheaton couldn't recover from.
The Polar Bears held the Lyons to 32.7% (17-52) shooting from the field, including 22.7% (5-22) from three-point range, while owning a 41.9% (26-62) shooting percentage. Bowdoin owned the glass with a 41-32 margin and outscored Wheaton, 18-9, in points off turnovers.
First year forward Darlene Tashobya (Kampala, Uganda) scored a career-high 11 points to go with six rebounds, two assists and a steal in 21 minutes off the bench for the Lyons, while junior guard Cheyenne Colbert (Brookline, N.H.) netted 11 points, grabbed eight rebounds and handed out an assist. Junior guard Mary Claire McClintock (Essex Junction, Vt.) chipped in with nine points, two rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Junior forward Abbie Quinn (Bangor, Maine) was a perfect 7-7 from the field to net a game-high 14 points, while adding eight rebounds, a block and a steal for the Polar Bears. Junior guard Maria Belardi (Scranton, Pa.) also scored 14 points and hit on 4-8 from the three-point range in addition to pulling down three rebounds, dishing out an assist and coming up with a steal. Sophomore guard Grace Kinum (New Providence, N.J.) contributed with 13 points, six boards, three steals and a game-high six assists.
Wheaton scored the first five points as part of a 9-4 run to open the game, led by four points from Colbert. Bowdoin took its first lead following a 7-0 burst, capped by a three-ball from sophomore guard Jamie Yue (Pasadena, Calif.) to give the home team an 11-9 margin at the 4:57 mark of the first quarter. Tashobya scored the next four points to reclaim the lead for the Lyons at 13-11 with 2:34 left in the quarter, but the Polar Bears answered in kind with the final four points of the period, including a layup from senior guard Rachel Storey (Westport, N.Y.) to give Bowdoin a 15-13 advantage.
The Polar Bears later expanded their lead to 27-19 following back-to-back layups from Kinum with 4:18 remaining in the first half. Wheaton answered with eight straight points sparked by a Colbert trifecta and capped by a triple from McClintock to pull the Lyons even at 27-27 with 1:41 showing on the second quarter clock. Senior guard Carly Davey (Westford, Mass.) stuck a three with 65 seconds to play in the quarter to give Bowdoin a three-point lead heading into the intermission.
The Polar Bears took control right away in the third quarter and never let up, putting together a 22-8 stretch through the first seven and a half minutes of the period to take a 52-35 cushion with 2:37 to go in the quarter. Belardi (11) and Quinn (8) combined for 19 points to lead the home team through the dominant run. Tashobya converted a pair of free throws for Wheaton with 1:02 left in the period, before a Davey free throw was the last point of the period to give Bowdoin a 53-37 advantage heading into the final quarter of play.
The teams combined for just 18 points in the fourth quarter with the Lyons never getting closer than 15 and the Polar Bears leading by as many as 22 before coming away with the 20-point victory.
Wheaton returns to action on Tuesday, January 6 when it hosts Brandeis University at Emerson Gymnasium for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off, while Bowdoin opens New England Small College Athletic Conference play in Medford, Mass. against Tufts University on January 9 at 7:00 p.m.
