Nichols Shuts Down Fitchburg State, 68-60

Fahey and Enright combine for 29 points to lead Falcons in non-conference setback

FITCHBURG, Mass. (November 26, 2012) – The Fitchburg State women's basketball team suffered a tough non-conference setback this evening, falling to the visiting Bison of Nichols College, 68-60 at the Fitchburg State Recreation Center.

Nichols received a strong offensive effort from its veteran trio Devon Spirka (Wilmington, Vt./Twin Valley), Hayley Zophin (Framingham, Mass./Framingham) and Sarah Whitestone (Dalton, Mass./Wahconah) who combined for 50 points on the evening. Spirka led all scorers with a game-high 18 points, hitting 10-of-12 from the charity stripe, to go with eight rebounds, four assists and two steals. Zophin was also solid with a double-double effort of 16 points and 14 boards, while Whitestone added 16 points with 6-of-13 shooting.

Junior Amy Fahey (Wilmington, Mass./Wilmington) led the Falcons offensive efforts with an all-around effort of 15 points, seven boards, four steals and three assists, while sophomore Kristen Enright (Westminster, Mass./Oakmont) added a double-double night, posting 14 points and a game-high 17 rebounds.

Nichols opened with a strong first half, posting an eight point lead at the break (38-30). Zophin used a strong first half to lead the Bison, posting a near double-double with ten points and eight rebounds, while Whitestone notched a 14 point effort with 6-of-9 shooting from the field. Fahey led the Falcons with nine points, hitting on 4-of-9 attempts from the floor.

The Bison extended their lead to as much as 15 (51-36) in the second half, led by an 11-6 opening run. Lindgren opened the half with a three point play for Nichols, before Alexis Wegrzynek (Wilbraham, Mass./Chicopee Comprehensive) added a pair of jumpers and Whitestone chipped in with a pair of free-throws.

Fitchburg State marched back with a run of their own, closing within five (55-50) behind a solid 10-0 rally. Freshman Erica Schneider (Rockland, Mass./Rockland) kick started the rally with two free-throws with 11:51 remaining, while Enright added back-to-back buckets at the 10:10 mark. But the Falcons could not cut their deficit any further as as Spirka and the Bison used some clutch free-throw shooting down the stretch to seal the victory and maintain a two basket advantage.

For the game, Nichols shot 39.0% from the floor, including a solid 51.6% in the first half, while Fitchburg State was held to just 30.3% shooting and only 8.7% from beyond the arc. The Bison also held the advantage on the board, 49-46, while the Falcons caused 23 turnovers with 12 steals on the evening.

Fitchburg State (1-3, 0-0 MASCAC) will be back in action on Thursday night as it travels to Rivier College at 7 p.m. Nichols (2-0, 0-0 TCCC) will visit Curry College on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.