BABSON PARK, Mass. — Down two points on its final possession, graduate student Emily Flynn (Hanover, Mass.) drained a three-point shot with 4.6 seconds remaining and Babson College held on to defeat rival Springfield College, 64-63, in a dramatic New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) women's basketball battle Saturday afternoon inside Staake Gymnasium. 

Babson, which has won two of its last three games, improved to 9-6 on the season and opened the conference schedule at 1-0. Springfield dropped its second in a row and dipped to 9-6 overall and 0-1 in league play.

Flynn led the Beavers with 14 points and added seven rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Rylie Rosenberg (New Rochelle, N.Y.) tallied 12 points and four assists, sophomore Julia St. Laurent (Greenland, N.H.) added 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting, a team-high eight rebounds and four helpers, and sophomore Alessa Mendoza (Yonkers, N.Y.) contributed 11 points and four assists.

Senior Stefany Padula (Franklin, Mass.) led all scorers with 17 points for Springfield, going 5-for-5 from three-point range and 6-of-7 overall. Junior Natalie Lucas (Madison, Conn.) added 14 points, classmate Claire Finney (Haverhill, Mass.) finished with 11 points, five assists four boards, and three steals, and senior Amanda Leary (Westbury, N.Y.) contributed eight points and a team-high six rebounds.

In a contest between two archrivals, Springfield controlled the first quarter, leading by as much as eight points (13-5) late in the frame. Senior Chloe Perrault (Danbury, Conn.) and Flynn opened the second quarter with back-to-back threes to tie the score, and it was a one possession game the remainder of the half before going into the break tied at 27-all.

St. Laurent and Rosenberg scored the first five points of the third quarter as Babson reached a five-point lead. The Beavers held a two-possession lead until Rosenberg hit a pair of free throws ifor their largest lead of the afternoon, 47-40, with 1:45 to go in the third. Sophomore Ruth Boles (South Portland, Maine) and classmate Madison Lopez (Bronx, N.Y.) combined for three points for the Pride to cut the margin to 47-43 entering the fourth quarter.

Rosenberg and senior Allessia Carlo (Carmel, N.Y.) hit a pair of early threes as Babson produced a seven-point margin with nine minutes remaining. Springfield went on a 9-2 run to tie the game at 55-all with less than five minutes remaining, as Padula hit a three and Lucas knocked down a pair of jumpers in the rally.

Tied at 59 with a minute to play, the visitors took a three-point lead on a long-ball from Padula with 49 seconds on the clock. Mendoza made a baseline layup to cut the margin to one, and Leary hit a free throw to put Springfield up 63-61 with 26 seconds remaining. After a timeout, Babson worked its offense and Mendoza drove into the lane and dished out to Flynn beyond the arc, and she drained the go-ahead bucket with 4.6 seconds to play.

Springfield got off two potential game-winning shots in the final seconds, but both bounced off the rim.

The Pride finished 9-of-16 (56.3 percent) from three-point land and 42.1 percent overall, while Babson converted 43.6 from the field and had a narrow 32-30 advantage on the glass.

Both teams will be back in action with NEWMAC games on Wednesday at 7 p.m. as Babson visits Coast Guard and Springfield travels to Salve Regina.
 
GAME NOTES
• Babson is 38-16 all-time against the Pride in a series that dates back to 1993.
• The Green and White have won four straight and 15 of the last 20 games versus Springfield, with the last four wins all decided by five points or less.
• Rosenberg has scored in double figures in five consecutive games with eight three-pointers over the last three contests.
• Flynn has made at least two three-pointers in five straight contests and has connected on a triple in 16 straight games going back to last February.