Seahawks drop decision to No. 25 Nor'easters

BIDDEFORD, Maine -- Sophomore point guard Meghan Gribbin (Windham, Maine) scored 16 of her career-high 22 points after halftime to help the University of New England to a 72-57 Commonwealth Coast Conference women's basketball victory over Salve Regina University on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 8) at the Harold Alfond Forum.

In a rematch of last season's CCC title game, UNE won its seventh consecutive contest to improve to 19-2 overall, 12-1 in conference play. The Seahawks dropped below the .500 mark at 10-11, 8-6 in CCC action. The Nor'easters, ranked 25th in the USA Today Coaches' Top 25 Poll, have now won 24 straight at home and are 26-1 all-time at the Harold Alfond Forum.

Gribbin was 8-for-8 at the free throw line and knocked down a pair of treys in the second half to help UNE fend off any hope of a Salve comeback. She finished the contest 6-for-9 from the floor and added six rebounds.

The Nor'easters received 18 points from sophomore forward Kelly Coleman (Portland, Conn.) -- 13 of which came in the first half -- to go with 10 boards and four assists. Her double-double was the 15th of her career. First-year forward Brooke Flaherty (Portland, Maine) came off the bench to score 12 points, and sophomore guard Paige Dessureau (Barre, Vt.) provided a spark with a career-best seven points.

Salve Regina sophomore guard Meaghan Harden (Sandwich, Mass.) poured in 26 points to lead all scorers. Harden, who added eight boards and three assists, tallied 21 points in the second frame. Senior forward Marissa Pendergast (Medfield, Mass.) and junior forward Brianna Del Valle (Belchertown, Mass.) each scored 11 points while combining for 17 boards.

After the two teams traded the opening four buckets of the game, the Nor'easters strung together 10 points to establish a lead (14-4) they would never relinquish. Coleman had seven of the 10 points, including a fastbreak basket to cap the spurt at the 14:40 mark.

The Seahawks attempted to grab a bit of momentum, cutting their deficit to five (18-13) on a pair of Del Valle free throws halfway through the frame, but Big Blue would finish the period by scoring 19 of the next 29 points to take a 37-21 cushion intermission.

UNE shot a sparkling 55.2 percent (16 of 29) from the floor for the half, compared to just 29.6 accuracy (8 of 27) for Salve Regina.

The Nor'easters' margin never fell below 10 points after halftime, despite making 26.7 percent (8 of 30) of their field goal attempts. UNE was 16-for-22 at the line in the second half to help seal the victory.

Both teams return to action Wednesday (Feb. 12) with home games starting at 5:30 p.m. Salve Regina will face Eastern Nazarene College, while Big Blue hosts Gordon College.