BRUNSWICK – It took less than three minutes to wipe away 17 minutes of momentum for the Colby-Sawyer Chargers Friday night.
The Bowdoin Polar Bears used a 9-0 run at the end of the first half to spring board into a dominating second half in defeating the Chargers 73-54 in the opening round of the NCAA Division III women’s basketball tournament.
With 2:57 remaining in the first half and his team leading 30-24, Colby-Sawyer coach George Martin elected to sit down three of his starters with two fouls each.
The Polar Bears (25-2) took advantage. Using a frenetic pace, they began beating the Charger reserves to every loose ball and gave the visitors no room to operate.
After 17 minutes of hot shooting, the Chargers suddenly struggled to maintain any semblance of an offense.
“What helped us in the first half is we were scoring,” said Martin. “Once they started to stop us, they turned up the pressure.”
After Eileen Flaherty nailed a pair of free throws, freshman reserve Alexa Kaubris slashed her way to the hoop to pull the Polar Bears within two points. Julia Loonin ended the half by draining a 3-pointer from the wing and hitting a pair of free throws, and the Polar Bears led 33-30.
After their lead disappeared, the Chargers (23-5) never got any closer than three points.
“They took the wind out of our sails a bit because they were hitting so many of their shots,” said Bowdoin coach Stefanie Pemper. “I just think we’re more athletic than they are. We move our feet well.”
The Polar Bears certainly displayed their superior athleticism in the second half. They employed multiple full-court presses and disrupted the Chargers’ offense throughout, causing 28 turnovers for the game.
Bowdoin had only four players hitting the scoring column in the first half, with Flaherty leading the way with 15 of her game-high 23 points. In the second half, the Polar Bears received a big lift from freshman Jill Anelauskas. The reserve forward came off the bench to score 12 points.
Midway through the half, Anelauskas connected on a post-up move to put the Polar Bears up 57-46. Moments later, she stole the ball and went the length of the court to increase the lead to 13.
“I thought she played aggressively and physical in the post,” said Pemper. “She’s a scorer. It’s hard to find minutes for her with Flaherty and (Justine) Pouravelis, but she accepts her role well.”
Pouravelis finished with 16 points and five steals while Loonin added 14 for Bowdoin.
Colby-Sawyer received a big game from center Stacey Hildreth who had 13 points and 12 rebounds. Anne Coulter added 14.
Comments are no longer available on this story