PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – Jessica Scannell converted a layup with 21.6 seconds remaining to lift Pace University to a 50-49 Northeast-10 women's basketball victory over Southern New Hampshire University Wednesday night at the Goldstein Center.  The Setters improve to 9-7 and 7-5 in the NE-10, while the Penmen are now 8-8 and 5-7 in the league.

Brittany Shields led the Setters with 14 points and nine rebounds, going 7-14 from the floor, while Allison Cleary added 13 points on 6-11 shooting.

Sloane Sorrell (Berwick, Maine) led Southern New Hampshire with 23 points and seven rebounds, going 9-18 from the floor and 5-6 at the free throw line.  Sorrell moved into fourth place on SNHU's career scoring list as she now has 1,323 points, while her seven boards moved her into a tie for seventh in that category.  Michelle DeRoma (West Roxbury, Mass.) knocked down a pair of three-pointers and finished with eight points, while Lorreta Rocha (Espargos, Cape Verde) and Victoria Wiseman (Montreal, Quebec) each added six points.

Southern New Hampshire trailed 25-16 at halftime and 29-18 1:49 into the second half, but used an 8-0 run capped by a Sorrell basket with 10 minutes left that gave the guests their first lead since early in the contest at 39-38.  The two teams traded the lead three times before Pace eked out a 48-44 lead with 4:07 left.  On SNHU's next possession, Sorrell converted a three-point play that made it 48-47 with 3:41 left.  Rocha gave the Penmen a 49-48 lead with 2:09 left with her driving layup. 

The two teams traded empty possessions, but Sorrell came up with a steal with a minute to go.  A three by DeRoma with 38 seconds remaining was off the mark and Cleary grabbed the rebound.  Scannell's layup with 21.6 seconds left gave the Setters a 50-49 lead.  Following a Pace timeout, Deborah Lavalley (Rochester, N.H.) got a good look at a three-pointer as time wound down, but her attempt was short and Shields corralled the carom with 3.1 seconds to go.  Having committed just two fouls to that point, the Penmen fouled four times but were able to put Pace on the free throw line.

Pace led much of the first half, taking the lead for good in the period 5:20 into the game on a Yuni Sher basket.  The Setters closed the first half on an 11-4 run and a Cleary three-pointer 23 seconds before intermission gave the hosts a 25-16 lead at the break.

The Setters held a commanding 38-24 rebounding advantage, including a 13-6 edge on the offensive glass that led to a 11-2 lead in second chance points.  Pace shot 42.3% for the game but just 2-12 behind the arc.  Southern New Hampshire shot 54.2% over the final minutes after going just 7-25 from the floor in the first frame.  The Penmen, who were 2-8 behind the arc, generated six more trips to the free throw line, but were just 7-14 at the charity stripe while the hosts were 4-8.

Southern New Hampshire returns home on Saturday, January 26 when it hosts Adelphi University in a 1:30 Northeast-10 contest at the SNHU Fieldhouse.

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