DUDLEY, Mass. – Senior guard Ashley Robidoux (Milford, Mass.) led all scorers with 24 points and added seven rebounds and six steals to lead the Nichols College women's basketball team to a 69-49 victory over visiting Wentworth Institute of Technology in a The Commonwealth Coast Conference game Tuesday evening. Nichols improves to 10-11 overall and 4-6 in conference play. Wentworth falls to 9-13 overall and 3-7 in league games.
Joining Robidoux in celebrating the Bison's Senior Night was forward Jessica Nelson (North Providence, R.I.), who registered her 10th double-double of the season with 12 rebounds and 11 points, and forward Andrea Ferris (Windsor, Mass.), who added nine points and eight rebounds.
Kristen Vallone (Avon, N.Y.) posted a double-double for the Leopards, netting 14 points and 14 rebounds, including 12 off the defensive glass. Kendra Kerr (Marshfield, Mass.) added 16 points and six boards.
Wentworth used a 13-2 run midway through the opening half to build up an 11-point lead, but Nichols took momentum of the game and went on a 12-0 run capped by a Robidoux three-point play to retake the lead, 21-20, with 1:02 left in the frame. Vallone was fouled when pulling down a rebound and sank both free throws to send the Leopards into the locker room with a 22-21 advantage.
Robidoux tied the game, 32-all, with a three-pointer at the 14:19 mark of the second half, but Wentworth went ahead by three over the next three possessions. After a Chelsea Shaughnessy (Halifax, Mass.) steal, it was Robidoux with another well-timed trey who tied it at 35-35 two minutes later. From this one Nichols didn't look back, holding the Leopards to two points over the final five minutes of the game while racking up 15 points from a variety of shooters.
Nichols held a 44-36 rebounding margin, and put up 16 second-chance points on 19 offensive boards, seven of which came from Nelson. The Bison also parlayed the Leopards' 27 turnovers into 32 points and recorded a season high-matching 17 steals, led by six from Robidoux and five from Shaughnessy.
The Bison start a three-game road trip this Saturday with a 1 p.m. TCCC game at Eastern Nazarene. Wentworth travels to Curry for a 1 p.m. conference game Saturday.
-Story courtesy of Nichols Sports Information-
