MANCHESTER, N.H. – Sophomore Amra Elezovic (Manchester, N.H.) had a career-high 25 points as the Southern New Hampshire University women's basketball team downed Saint Anselm College 71-63 in Northeast-10 action Wednesday night at the SNHU Fieldhouse.  The Penmen won their third in a row to improve to 3-1 and 1-0 in the NE-10, while the Hawks are now 3-2 and 0-2 in the league.

Elezovic finished 9-19 from the floor, including 3-6 behind the arc, and also grabbed six rebounds.  Brooke Springfield (Jaffrey, N.H.) and Erin Doherty (Marshfield, Mass.) each totaled nine points for the Penmen, while Kaylea Griffin (Green Springs, Ohio) matched her career-best with eight points while also grabbing five rebounds.

Meg Morrissey led four Hawks in double figures with 12 points, going 4-8 from the floor.

A see-saw first half saw seven ties and nine lead changes and neither side leading by more than four points.  A 6-2 spurt capped by a Griffin basket 7:11 before halftime gave the Penmen a 27-23 lead, but Saint Anselm countered with a 7-2 run and a Mariah Wynn basket at the 4:20 mark gave the guests a 30-29 lead.  SNHU never trailed following an Elezovic basket at the 4:08 mark, and her three-pointer eight seconds before the break made it 40-37 at intermission.

Southern New Hampshire appeared poised to put the game away early in the second half, outscoring the Hawks 11-2 over the first eight minutes to build a 51-39 lead.  Saint Anselm scored the next six points to make it 51-45 with just under 10 minutes left, but the Penmen were able to maintain a lead between six and 10 points much of the rest of the way before the Hawks cut it to five with 26 seconds left on a Kierra Moore three that made it 68-63.  Southern New Hampshire sealed the win by going 5-6 at the free throw line in the final minute.

SNHU took advantage of 31 trips to the free throw line by going 25-31, while the Hawks were just 10-23 at the charity stripe.  Both teams shot well in the first half (SAC 51.6%, SNHU 46.4%) but the Penmen finished at 40.4% and the Hawks 41.7% for the contest.  The Penmen also held a 40-39 rebounding advantage.

Southern New Hampshire closes out its five-game homestand Saturday when it hosts Saint Michael's College in a 1:30 Northeast-10 contest at the SNHU Fieldhouse.

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