Feb. 9, 2008
Box Score
BABSON PARK, Mass. - Senior Caitlin Fenn (Niantic, Conn.) hit the game-tying lay-up with 7.6 seconds left in regulation and classmate Linsey Poulson (Leominster, Mass.) hit the eventual game-winning shot with 22.1 seconds remaining in overtime as the host Babson College Beavers held on for a thrilling 69-64 victory over visiting Springfield College in a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) contest on Saturday afternoon. The game also featured a celebration of the Women's Basketball Coaches' Association's "Think Pink" program - a nationwide initiative to help increase breast cancer awareness.
Poulson was magnificent in the win for Babson (10-11, 5-4 NEWMAC), as she finished with 22 points and a game-high 16 rebounds while shooting 7-for-10 from the field and 8-8 from the line. Senior co-captains Nicole McManus (Baldwinsville, N.Y.) also posted a double-double for the Beavers, finishing with 10 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocked shots, while fellow senior co-captain Caitlin Boulier (Wolcott, Conn.) added 12 points, three assists, and two steals, including a critical theft that gave Babson the ball back with 8.4 seconds left in overtime.
Springfield (11-9, 6-3 NEWMAC) was paced by senior co-captain Christine Cotter (Stoughton, Mass.), who led all players with 26 points and five steals. Junior Corey Finch (Hanover, Pa.) also had a big game for the Pride, recording 10 points, 12 rebounds, and two blocks, and senior co-captain Tara McCarthy (Bristol, R.I.) chipped in with 11 points in defeat.
Babson led by as many as eight on two occasions in the first half, but Springfield used a late 8-0 run to take its first lead of the game at 25-24 with 1:23 remaining. Boulier then knocked down a jumper with 49 seconds remaining to give the hosts a slim 26-25 edge heading into the break.
Both teams would threaten to pull away in the second stanza, beginning when a jumper by Poulson that gave Babson a 39-32 lead just five minutes in. Cotter then exploded for 10 straight points as part of a 13-2 Springfield run that put the Pride in front, 45-41, with 10:41 left to play. The visitors later went up by seven on two occasions - once on a three-pointer by Cotter with 3:52 left and again on a bucket by first-year Rachelle Walker (Lee, Mass.) with 2:31 remaining.
Playing in her first game back from injury, first-year Kristy Benoit (Shrewsbury, Mass.) hit a lay-up at the two-minute mark to cut Babson's deficit to five, and Poulson scored off an offensive rebound and put-back to make it a three-point game, 59-56, with 56 seconds to go. After a missed three-pointer by Springfield, Benoit drew a foul and hit the second of two free throws to make it a 59-57 game with 14.6 seconds on the clock, and the Beavers caught a huge break moments later when a violation on the ensuing inbound pass gave them the ball back. Babson then got the ball to Fenn, who drove the right side of the lane and hit the game-tying lay-up in traffic with 7.6 seconds remaining in regulation. Springfield had one more chance to claim the win, but Finch's desperation three from the right hash mark just missed off the back rim as the buzzer sounded, sending the contest into overtime.
The two squads continued to battle back and forth in the extra session, with Poulson hitting two free throws to put Babson up, 63-62, with 2:43 left. Both teams came up empty on their next three possessions, with Springfield finally moving back in front, 64-63, on a steal and lay-up by Cotter with 42.5 seconds to go. The Beavers then pounded the ball inside to Poulson, who hit a turnaround jumper in the lane to give Babson the lead for good, 65-64, with 22.1 seconds to play.
After calling a timeout, Springfield still had a chance to retake the lead when Boulier came up with a huge steal at the foul line and drew an immediate foul with 8.4 seconds left. The Beavers' senior co-captain then sank both freebies to give her team a 67-64 lead, and, after a missed three-pointer by the Pride, McManus drew a foul and hit two more free throws with 1.4 seconds remaining to seal the 69-64 Babson victory.
Playing without injured starting point guard Amanda Grammel (Leominster, Mass.), Babson received huge minutes from a number of reserves, including junior Leigh Myer (Seattle, Wash.), who had four points, four rebounds, and two assists in 18 minutes, sophomore Sarah Hughes (Wellesley, Mass.), who added five rebounds in 10 minutes, and sophomore Jill Walsh (Merrimack, N.H.), who scored four points and dished out two assists in her first start of the season. Rookie Tracy Ericson (Pepperell, Mass.) also came up big for the Beavers, as she ignited the crowd with her first career three-pointer midway through the second half.
As part of the WBCA's "Think Pink" event, a number of prizes were raffled off at halftime with all proceeds going to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. In addition, all Babson students who attended the game were given pink special edition "Beaver Nation" tee-shirts. The Babson team also wore the tee-shirts during their pregame warmups, as well as pink ribbons on their uniforms.
