#2 WPI 61, #7 Nichols 53 (ECAC Quarterfinals)

Worcester, MA --- Second-seeded WPI held off a furious Nichols rally to post a 61-53 victory over the visiting seventh-seeded Bison in an ECAC New England Division III Women's Basketball Tournament first round contest on Wednesday evening. With the win, the Engineers (21-7) advance to Friday's semifinal where they will host third-seeded Endicott, a 58-42 winner over Castleton State in another first round game.

WPI led by as many as 17 with just over 11 minutes remaining before the Bison rattled off 14 straight points to cut the WPI advantage to 46-43 with five minutes left. Caitlin Macko (Cromwell, CT) stop the run with a pair of free throws and then WPI added some breathing room when Kaileen Selen (Worcester, MA) stole the subsequent inbounds pass and immediately hit Macko in stride for a layup that pushed the lead back up to seven points.

Nichols would have one final crack in the last minute. A nifty layup by MaryLynn Skarzenski (Woodbridge, NJ) cut the defict to five at 58-53 with 50 seconds remaining. After a WPI missed a layup, the Bison got what appeared to be an open look at a three-pointer but Selen came out of nowhere and blocked the shot. The Engineers would drain three-of-four free throws in the closing seconds to secure the victory.

Senior Meghan Pajonas (Bristol, CT) paced WPI with 13 points and 12 rebounds. It marked her tenth double-double of the season and eighth in the last 11 outings. Macko and Selen added 12 and 10 points respectively while Kate Maki (Fitchburg, MA) and Michele Perry (Pelham, NH) each chipped in with eight.

Senior Stacey Hejwosz (Dudley, MA) led a balanced Nichols attack with 13 points while Curtia Humbert (Bridgeport, CT) tallied 12 points and Skarzenski finished with ten. Margaret Lilly (Ashfield, MA) contributed eight points and a team-best eight rebounds while the trio of Hejwosz, Humbert and Skarzenski all swiped four steals for the Bison, who sees their season end with a record of 17-11.

In other first round action, eighth-seeded Rhode Island College stunned top-seeded Colby-Sawyer 46-44 with two three-pointers in the final 2.6 seconds. This means the WPI-Endicott winner will host the Wheaton, who defeated visiting Suffolk 61-53, or RIC in Saturday's championship game at a time to be determined.