CANTON, N.Y. – Senior
Sophie Borg scored 11 of her game-high 19 points in the fourth quarter as the Union College women's basketball team picked up a critical 53-43 Liberty League win over St. Lawrence University on the road at Berkman Gymnasium on Friday night.
The win is a big win in the postseason push for Union (13-7, 8-6 Liberty League), as the Dutchwomen now hold a two-game lead over RPI for fifth place in the conference standings and remain 1.5 games back of William Smith College for fourth place with a game in hand.
Borg had a huge game to lead the Dutchwomen, matching her season-high with 19 points. Senior
Nicole Conley (11 points) and junior
Elly Vaughan (10 points, nine rebounds) also reached double figures for Union, while the defense kept all SLU players to no more than eight points on the night.
Union did not have a great shooting night, hitting 18-of-50 shots (36.0 percent) from the field, but the team was excellent from the charity stripe (14 of 16) and also limited St. Lawrence to just 29.4 percent (15 of 51) shooting while forcing 22 turnovers.
Tied at 24 entering the third quarter, Union outscored SLU 8-2 to start the period, beginning with a Borg layup and followed by a three from Conley and an old-fashioned three-point play from Vaughan. In all, the Dutchwomen doubled up the Saints 12-6 in the third quarter, led by seven points from Conley.
After Conley took control in the third quarter, her classmate was the one that put the team on her back in the fourth, scoring 11 of her team's 17 points. Borg started the fourth frame with a bucket to give Union its biggest lead of the game at 38-30, and Vaughan added a big basket with 3:11 left immediately after St. Lawrence had cut the deficit to two points. After two Conley free throws, Borg then scored the team's final seven points, including a 5-for-5 effort from the line, to secure the win.
The Dutchwomen heated up as the game went on, following a cold stretch to end the first quarter and start the second. But despite the early struggles, the UC defense limited the home team to just five points during a five-minute scoreless stretch to stay in the game. Union was down by as many as eight points in the second stanza, but five straight points from Vaughan jumpstarted a 10-0 run that put the visitors up 22-20 with 2:42 left. The teams went into the half tied at 24.
Union will finish up its North Country weekend tomorrow, as the Dutchwomen take on Clarkson University in another key conference clash starting at 2 p.m. in Potsdam.
