Box Score

Senior G Bianca Simmons (Middletown, Conn.) matched her career-high of 28 points for the second straight game, but it wasn't enough as Stonehill College defeated UMass Lowell, 82-75, Wednesday night in a Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball clash at the Costello Athletic Center.

With the loss, UMass Lowell slipped to 3-1 overall and 1-2 in the Conference entering Saturday's home game against Merrimack (2:00). Stonehill improved to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the Conference.

Stonehill used a 9-2 spurt over the final 3:13 to seal the win, over which it shot 3 for 7 from the field and 2-2 from the free throw line. UMass Lowell shot 1-4 and turned the ball over twice.

Simmons, who compiled 28 points in Sunday's 72-52 win over Queens College, also grabbed eight rebounds and dished five assists while hitting all 10 of her free throw attempts. She scored 20 of her points in the second half.

Freshman F Lindsey Doucette (Hopkinton, Mass.) added 15 points and eight rebounds while shooting 7-11 from the field while sophomore F Demetria Bell (Braintree, Mass.) chipped in a season-high 11 points.

Junior F Asia Ewing led three teammates in double digits with 21 points and 10 rebounds while converting 8-14 field goals, including a 3-pointer and layup in the late going. Sophomore G Amy Pelletier came off the bench to score 18 points on 6-12 field goal shooting while junior G Mary Louise Dixon added 17 points, seven assists and six rebounds while shooting 5-10 from the field.

Sophomore G Jamie Panton chipped in 11 points and six assists while shooting 5-9 from the field.
Stonehill had the upper hand from 3-point range, outscoring the River Hawks 24-12. The Skyhawks shot 8-23 from long range while UMass Lowell struggled to a 4-22 clip. The advantage buffered the Skyhawks 24 turnovers to UMass Lowell's 14.

The game featured 14 lead changes and nine instances where the score was tied.

Simmons converted a pair of free throws with 3:21 left to play to knot the score at 73-73, but Dixon added a pair and hit a layup for a 77-73 edge with 2:19 left to play.

After a 3-point attempt by junior G Danielle DePierro (Tewksbury, Mass.) was off the mark, Ewing meshed a trey with 29 seconds left and, following a missed layup by Simmons, hit a layup of her own with :09 left to seal the win.

UMass Lowell opened the second half with an 11-0 run in which Simmons meshed a pair of treys and Doucette added a 3-point shot and a layup, but Stonehill battled back with 13 straight points in which Pelletier hit consecutive 3-pointer and Dixon one to post a 54-52 edge with 14:13 left to play.

Neither team led by more than four points until the final 29 seconds.