BOX SCORE

SAN DIEGO - Southern New Hampshire University withstood a late University of New Haven rally and a three-pointer by Megan Shay (Candor, NY) with 39 seconds to play lifted the Penmen to a 68-67 women's basketball victory in the second round of the San Diego Surf N Slam at San Diego City College Saturday afternoon.  SNHU, which won its second-straight one point game, improves to 5-6 overall, while the Chargers, who currently lead the East Coast Conference standings, are now 5-5 overall.

Julia Houghtaling (Franconia, NH) paced SNHU with 13 points, six rebounds and four assists.  Ashara Carrington (Marblehead, MA) finished with 12 points and five boards for the Penmen, who also got eight points apiece from Sara Tucker (Red Hook, NY) and Heather Marino (Arlington, MA).  Shay connected on two threes and finished with six points.  Lauren Hood led all scorers with 20 points for New Haven.

Southern New Hampshire led by as many as 20 points in the second half and held a 62-46 lead with just under seven minutes to play on a pair of Carrington free throws.  The Chargers, who utilized full-court pressure the entire game, would then go on a 19-3 run capped by a three from the corner from Hood that gave UNH a 67-65 lead with 1:02 to play.  Following a timeout, point guard Andrea Lozeau (Pelham, NH) found Shay in the left corner for a wide-open three that connected as the Penmen reclaimed the lead.

New Haven would come up empty on its next trip and Carrington controlled the rebound, but following a timeout SNHU would commit a turnover, giving the Chargers one final shot.  A driving layup for UNH was off the mark to give Southern New Hampshire its fourth win by five points or less on the season.

The Penmen jumped all over New Haven early in the second half, turning what had been a 30-30 game at halftime into a 44-31 lead just three minutes into the period following a basket by Houghtaling.  The Southern New Hampshire lead would grow to as many as 20 when a pair of free throws just inside the halfway mark of the half by Marino made it 58-38.

The first half was a seesaw battle that saw six ties and three lead changes.  SNHU held a 7-0 lead 2:32 into the game following a Houghtaling free throw.  New Haven took its largest lead of the game, 28-24, on a three-pointer by Lauren Boivin at the 3:31 mark that capped a 7-0 UNH run.  The Chargers were up two late in the half when a driving layup by SNHU's Stephanie Houghton (Manchester, NH) with 17 seconds to play tied the game at 30 at the break.

Southern New Hampshire shot 51% for the game (25-49) but were hurt by 31 turnovers.  The Penmen held a 39-33 rebounding advantage, including a 23-11 margin in the second half, and were 15-23 at the free throw line, while the Chargers could convert only 16 of their 31 opportunities at the charity stripe.

SNHU returns to Northeast-10 play next Saturday when it travels to American International College for a 1:30 contest.