DUDLEY, Mass. – Senior Devon Spirka (Wilmington, Vt.) poured in a career-high 23 points to lead the Nichols College women's basketball team to a 70-63 win over Wentworth Institute of Technology Saturday afternoon in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) women's basketball action at the Nichols Athletic Center.
Spirka knocked down four shots from behind the arc as well as seven-of-eight from the free throw line as the Bison (8-6, 3-5 CCC) surpassed their win total from all of last season under second-year head coach Alice Mullen. The loss drops the Leopards to 5-9 (2-6 CCC).
Junior Amber Litwinko (Berlin, Conn.) fell one rebound shy of a double-double with 13 points and nine boards for the Bison, who also received 16 points from junior Sarah Whitestone (Dalton, Mass.) on six-of-nine from the field. Nichols shot a season-high 49 percent from the field (24-of-49) to help overcome 21 turnovers.
The Leopards, meanwhile, outrebounded the Bison 35-33 – including 17-10 on the offensive side. Senior Kendra Kerr (Marshfield, Mass.) scored a team-high 20 points – 10 of which came from the free throw line – and also snared eight rebounds in 39 minutes of action. A trio of sophomores – Megan McLaughlin (Southington, Conn.), Rachael Camara (Fall River, Mass.), and Carly Rogers (Scarborough, Maine) – each scored 11 points.
The Bison shot 46 percent in the first half to build a six-point halftime lead (30-24). Nichols – which never trailed in the contest – led by as many as nine following a basket from sophomore Jessica Kelliher (Marshfield, Mass.) with 5:32 on the clock. Kerr led all scorers with 12 points while Litwinko netted 11 and Spirka had six.
Wentworth scored the first six points of the second half – including four from Rogers – to tie the game at 30. Four minutes later, a layup by Spirka put the Bison up six at 38-32, and a three from sophomore Chelsey Mahoney (Dracut, Mass.) stretched the lead to nine (52-43) with 8:11 remaining in the half.
A basket by Kelliher with 4:33 to go made it a 12-point advantage for the home team before a pair of jumpers from Kerr and two free throws from Camara cut the lead to six. The Leopards got to within four after Camara drained her only three of the contest with 2:12 to go, but four free throws from Spirka down the stretch solidified the win. Nichols shot 52 percent over the final 20 minutes.
Camara finished with a team-high nine rebounds while Kerr grabbed eight. Spirka and McLaughlin each handed out five assists. Spirka notched seven rebounds and a pair of steals.
The Bison return to action on Tuesday with a 7:30 p.m. contest against Eastern Nazarene. Wentworth hosts Endicott Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
(Recap courtesy of Nichols Sports Information)
