NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Chloe Rothman finished with 17 points off the bench to lead Merrimack College to a 73-65 Northeast-10 women's basketball triumph over Southern New Hampshire University Saturday afternoon at Hammel Court.  The Warriors upped their record to 11-10 and 7-9 in the NE-10, while the Penmen are now 7-14 and 5-11 in the league.

Rothman knocked down three three-pointers and led three Warriors in double figures.  Shelby Secor tallied 15 points off the bench, while Aria Johnson finished one steal shy of a triple-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds and nine steals.

Sophomore Erin Doherty (Marshfield, Mass.) posted a career high in the scoring column for the second straight game for Southern New Hampshire, pouring in 27 points, going 10-18 from the floor and 7-8 at the free throw line.  Junior Brooke Springfield (Jaffrey, N.H.) knocked down both of her three-point attempts and totaled 15 points, five rebounds and five assists, while classmate Lorreta Rocha (Espargos, Cape Verde) added 10 points, eight assists and six rebounds.

SNHU scored the game's first eight points and opened up a 21-10 lead on a pair of Doherty free throws 7:52 into the contest.  Down 23-13, Merrimack used a 16-2 run capped by a Rothman three 4:15 before halftime to take a 29-25 lead.  The Warriors led for the rest of the half and took a 33-29 lead into the locker room.

Merrimack extended the lead to nine early in the second half before a 6-0 spurt pulled the Penmen within three, 40-37 on a Rocha basket with 15:05 to go.  The lead fluctuated between three and five until a 10-3 Merrimack run gave the Warriors a 56-46 lead with just under seven minutes left on a pair of Secor free throws.  Southern New Hampshire cut the lead to five, 60-55, with 4:26 left on a Springfield three, but would get no closer.

SNHU shot 56% in the second half and 49% for the game while limiting Merrimack to 42.6% shooting, with the Warriors going 4-12 behind the arc and the Penmen 2-8.  Merrimack was 17-22 from the free throw line while Southern New Hampshire went 15-19, but the hosts had a 29-12 lead in points off turnovers, taking advantage of 24 Penmen giveaways.  SNHU held a 32-30 rebounding advantage.

Southern New Hampshire travels to Franklin Pierce University Tuesday night for a 5:30 Northeast-10 contest.  The next Penmen home game is set for Saturday, February 15 when SNHU hosts Stonehill College in a 1:30 tilt.  That game is the annual Penmen Pink Day for breast cancer awareness.

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