CHICOPEE, MASS. - The Colby-Sawyer women's basketball team put up a strong fight Wednesday night but fell short to Elms College 71-63. The Chargers drop to 0-4 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) competition.

Rapid Recap:

• Sophomore Catherine Chick (Glen, N.H.) started the scoring for the Chargers on Wednesday night, driving to the basket for a layup, A few minutes later, Chick added another basket, cutting the Blazers' lead to 6-4 with 5:34 remaining in the first quarter. The Chargers then tied the game at 8-8 when sophomore Delaney Raymond (Lyndon, Vt.) sank two free throws. The Blazers continued to make shots and ended the quarter with an 18-14 lead over the Chargers. 
• The Blazers started the second quarter with a quick seven-point lead over the Chargers, but junior Makenna Grillone (Walpole, N.H.) got the Chargers on the board by hitting a free throw. The Blazers continued to extend their lead to 10 points over the Chargers, but Grillone responded by driving into the basket for a layup, then added a free throw as the quarter would come to a close with the Blazers ahead, 27-20. 
• Chick would open the scoring to start the second half for the Chargers by knocking down a layup. The Blazers responded with making back-to-back layups to extend their lead early in the third quarter. The teams would continue to battle late in the quarter, trading buckets back-and-forth with Grillone making a pair of free throws to stay within five points of the Blazers, but the home team would make a free throw in the final minute to take a 43-37 lead at the end of the third quarter. 
• Junior Elyza Mitchell (Spofford, N.H.) would make a jumper, followed by senior Marissa Holt (Alfred, Maine) knocking down a three-pointer to get the Chargers within one point of the Blazers to start the final quarter. The Blazers responded by making back-to-back layups of their own to extend their lead to eight points with 8:04 left to play. First-year Hayden Wilkins (North Concord, Vt.) and Grillone would each knock down a pair of free throws to trim the Blazers lead, with Wilkins also knocking down a layup to cut the lead to four points. The Blazers would continue to extend their lead late in the quarter, with Raymond hitting a three-pointer to get the Chargers within six points. First-year Tanner Drury (Bethel, Vt.) hit two free throws to trim the deficit to four points, and a layup by first-year Lauren MacDonald (Tilton, N.H.) got the Chargers within two points of the Blazers in the final two minutes. The Blazers capitalized on fouls committed by the Chargers, extending their lead to double digits. Drury responded with back-to-back three-pointers to cut the Blazers lead to single digits, but the home team would seal the 71-63 victory with free throws in the final seconds of the game.  

Inside the Numbers:

• Grillone paced the Chargers with 15 points (3-11 FG, 1-6 3 PT, 8-11 FT), five rebounds, and two steals while Chick tallied 11 points (5-8 FG, 1-4 FT) and two steals. Wilkins added nine points (2-13 FG, 5-5 FT), four rebounds, and three assists with Holt (3-6 FG, 1-3 3 PT, 1-2FT) and Drury (2-3 FG, 2-3 3 PT, 2-2 FT) adding eight points apiece for the Chargers. 
• Mary Turco chipped in 14 points for the Blazers (5-8 FG, 4-4 FT) and six rebounds while Jade Lewis recorded 14 points (4-7 FG, 6-7 FT), five rebounds, and four assists. 
• The Blazers shot 42% from the field and 73.5% from the charity stripe. The Chargers shot 62.5% from the charity stripe and tallied 17 steals. 

Up Next:
The Chargers return to action on Saturday when they travel to Franklin, Massachusetts to take on Dean College with a 1:00 PM tip-off.