Statistics

BIDDEFORD, Maine – A strong finish to the second quarter, which carried into a dominant second half, powered Bates to a 65-36 victory over the University of New England women's basketball team on Sunday afternoon inside the Harold Alfond Forum.
 
After trailing by as many as 13 early in the second, UNE (3-4) was within six of the Bobcats with under two minutes remaining in the half. Bates (5-1), which appeared in the NCAA Division III Sweet 16 a season ago, closed the second quarter with an 6-0 run to take a 31-19 lead into halftime before scoring the first five points of the third quarter to open up a commanding 17-point lead. The Bobcats' advantage stretched as large as 32 in the fourth quarter.
 
12 different Bates players scored, with Sarah Hughes being the only Bobcat in double figures with a game-high 11 points. Sophie Spolter was one of two from Bates with eight points in addition to her 14 rebounds. Faye Veilleux led UNE with 10 points.
 
The Bobcats' stingy defense held the Nor'easters under 20 percent from the field (11-of-64), while Bates found its footing on the offensive end to shoot just under 50 percent, having shot exactly 50 percent in the second half.
 
Looking to recover from a slow start, the Nor'easters cut the visitors' lead to 21-15 at the 3:24 mark of the second quarter when Veilleux finished a layup through contact and drew a foul. Although UNE hung around within single digits for two-minute stretch late in the quarter, Petra Kuncz's bucket with just over a minute remaining started an 11-0 Bates run that would last until the early minutes of the third quarter.  Gabby Soter gave the Nor'easters life midway through the third, knocking down a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 36-24, but that was as close as UNE would come for the remainder of the game. Bates led by 19 (48-29) entering the fourth, riding what would end up being a 17-0 run that persisted past the 5:00 mark of the final quarter.
 
Now with the non-conference slate behind them, the Nor'easters will host Suffolk for the Conference of New England opener on Wednesday, Dec. 4 at 5:30 p.m.