Women's Basketball Advances to Hampton Inn/Naismith Classic Title Game

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- In the second game of the afternoon of the 2013 Hampton Inn/Naismith Classic, Bridgewater State held on for a 56-53 win against Eastern Connecticut State to advance to the tournament championship game against host Springfield.

ECSU will play Swarthmore in the consolation game on Wednesday at 1:00 pm, while the championship game will begin at 3:00 pm.

Michaela Cosby (Walpole, Mass.) poured in a game-high 21 points, including the final four points of the game to power Bridgewater State to a three-point win. The Bears, who led by as many as 17 in the first half, used a pair of buckets in the lane from Cosby in the final 1:55 to seal the victory. Megan Boutilette (Charlton, Mass.) added 10 points and nine rebounds, while Rachel Kusz (Worcester, Mass.) chipped in eight points off the bench.

Shannon McCourt (New Fairfield, Conn.) had a tremendous showing for the Warriors, notching a double-double with 20 points and 16 rebounds on 10-of-15 shooting. Jill Ritrosky (Pittsfield, Mass.) posted 11 points and six points, and Kristina Forsman (Newington, Conn.) produced nine points and four assists.

ECSU finished the game shooting 46.8% from the floor, hitting 22 of its 47 field goal attempts. However, the Warriors committed 24 turnovers, which ultimately led to 30 Bridgewater State points. The Bears shot just over 38% for the game (24-63), but struggled from beyond the arc, hitting just 6 of 23 bids.

After ECSU's Megan Cardarelli (Manchester, Conn.) knocked down a jumper to cut Bridgewater State's lead to four at 23-19 with 4:37 left on the clock, the Bears poured on a 13-0 run in just 3:30 to snag a commanding 17-point lead. Cosby had seven points during the run, which was highlighted by three consecutive trifectas.

Trailing by 12 at intermission, ECSU opened up the second half on a 19-6 burst to grab a 43-42 lead following a Victoria Pfhol (Trumbull, Conn.) three-ball. The Warriors maintained the lead until Kusz converted a great inside look from Cosby with 4:01 left in regulation, putting the Bears up 52-51. Forsman scored down low with 2:13 on the clock to put the Warriors back on top, only to have Cosby come up in the clutch en route to the three-point victory.