NORTHFIELD, Vt. - January 26, 2015 - The Colby-Sawyer women's basketball dropped a non-conference tilt at Norwich University, 71-59 at Andrews Hall on Monday night. The game was originally scheduled for December 9, but had to be postponed due to snowy conditions. 
 
With the win, Norwich improves to 13-4 on the year, while the loss drops Colby-Sawyer to 10-7 overall. The Chargers return to North Atlantic Conference (NAC) play on Friday with a 7:30 p.m. tip against Thomas at the Hogan Sports Center. 
 
Three Cadets scored in double digits with sophomore guard Kayla Mercer (New Britian, Conn.) posting a team-high 14 points, followed by senior guard Kelsey Lotti's (South Yarmouth, Mass.) 13 points and senior guard Aliah Curry's (Windsor, Mass.) 11 points on the night. Mercer shot 4-of-6 from beyond the arc as Lotti hit 3-of-8 from the same range a freshman forward Arianna Harrison (Vernon, Vt.) led the team in the backcourt with nine rebounds and added nine points in the win.

Colby-Sawyer was led by sophomore forward Kristin Ellis, who recorded her first double-double of the season with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Ellis has at least 10 rebounds in six of the last seven games. Katie McCarthy added 14 points in 22 minutes off the bench. Lexi Iannone continued her hot shooting with 10 points on 4-of-7 from the floor. 

The Chargers finished the night hitting 38.2 of the shots from the field and 29.2 percent from beyond the arc, while the Cadets shot similar numbers, 38.1 percent from the floor and 33.3 percent from the three-point line, however Norwich had an advantage on rebounds, 41-34, and converted 16 points on second chances.
 
Norwich jumped out to 10-4 lead in the first five minutes off the opening tip, thanks to a pair of long bombs by Lotti and Mercer. Colby-Sawyer would respond with a pair of threes of its own from Katie McCarthy and Lexi Iannone to knot the game at 10 points apiece.
 
After both teams swapped baskets, Lotti would hit her second three-pointer to spark an 8-0 run for the 20-12 score before the Cadets went on another run, this time an 11-5 spread, to lead 31-17 with 5:33 remaining in the stanza. The Chargers would break out of the slump with a 9-0 run capped by a pair of Ellis buckets, before Mercer made back-to-back shots from beyond the arc to give the Cadets the 37-28 lead at the break.
 
The Chargers immediately closed the gap three and half minutes into the second with a 9-2 run to cut the deficit to 39-34. Norwich responded with a 12-3 charge for the 51-37 score at the 11:43 mark. The tables shifted once again with the Chargers catching up with their second run of the half, this time on a 13-3 run, cutting the deficit to just four points with 7:50 remaining in the game.
 
The Cadets took advantage of Colby-Sawyer's foul troubles in the final three minutes, hitting seven of the eight shots from the charity stripe to put the game out of reach for the 71-59 victory.

---Norwich