Women’s Basketball Outlasted By Nichols College, 68-57

Box Score

CHICOPEE, Mass. – Elms College senior forward Amanda Brogna (Oxford, Mass.) struck for a game-high 22 points and added 12 rebounds, but a 5-0 run with 50 seconds left in the game halted a Blazers’ comeback attempt as Nichols College completed a 68-57 victory in Wednesday evening’s non-conference women’s basketball game at Picknelly Arena.

With the loss, Elms slips to 1-5 overall, while Nichols College wins its fourth consecutive game to improve to 5-2 on the season.

Trailing 29-18 at halftime, Elms came out firing in the second period when senior guard Jessica Jurkowski (Belchertown, Mass.) drained a three-pointer 50 seconds into the stanza. After a Nichols layup, Brogna drained a pair of free throws, sophomore point guard Carolyn Talmadge (Wilbraham, Mass.) sank a trey, and freshman guard Jen Normandie (Westford, Mass.) connected on a mid-range jumper to pull the Blazers to within three at 31-28 just 1:52 into the frame.

The Bison responded by scoring 10 of the next 14 points to extend their cushion to nine at 41-32 with just over 14 minutes remaining in the contest.

Elms answered right back using an 11-6 run to pull to within four at 47-43 with 9:47 remaining. Blazers sophomore guard Christina Korney (Feeding Hills, Mass.) sparked the rally with a three-pointer, while Normandie, senior forward Erin Hutchinson (Groton, Mass.) and sophomore guard Katie Condon (Sandy Hook, Conn.) each added buckets to highlight the stretch.

After Bison guards Ashley Robidoux (Milford, Mass.) and Lyndsey Bennett (North Brookfield, Mass.) each connected from beyond the arc, and forward Chelsea Shaughnessy (Halifax, Mass.) delivered two free throws, Nichols extended its lead to 12, its largest advantage of the game at 55-43 with 6:13 left.

The Blazers again narrowed its deficit, this time to six, scoring 14 of the next 22 points behind a 6 for 6 effort from Brogna at the stripe, in addition to a pair of layups from the senior forward. Talmadge and Normandie added a basket each to cut the Bison edge in half and bring the score to 63-57 with 50 seconds remaining.

Nichols sealed the contest by hitting 5 of 7 from the line including two from forward Jessica Nelson (North Providence, R.I.), one from Shaughnessy and two from guard Kristina Lindgren (Sturbridge, Mass.).

Both teams struggled to find a rhythm to start the game, but Nichols was able to stake a seven-point lead at 11-4 with 11 minutes to go in the opening period. Elms pulled to within four on two occasions but a 12-5 run over the final 5:24 gave the Bison an 11-point lead at intermission.

In addition to her 22 points and 12 rebounds, Brogna finished 9 for 12 from the free throw line and 1-1 from beyond the arc.

Normandie netted 10 points and contributed three steals while Talmadge finished with seven points, all in the second half.

Nelson led the way for Nichols, scoring a team-high 16 points while hauling in 13 rebounds. Robidoux, guard Michele Guerin (Chicopee, Mass.) and Bennett each recorded double-digit points, netting 14, 11 and 10 respectively. Robidoux swatted four shots, while Guerin passed out seven assists to highlight the winning effort.

Elms returns to action on Saturday, Dec. 12 when it hosts Castleton State College. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m. at Picknelly Arena.