BOX SCORE

When and Where: February 10, 2018 – No. Andover, Mass. (Hammel Court)
Score: Merrimack College 56, Southern New Hampshire University 49
Records: Merrimack 14-9 (10-8 NE10), SNHU 15-9 (11-7 NE10)

Junior Kylie Lorenzen (Holliston, Mass.) recorded 16 points, but the Southern New Hampshire University women's basketball team was defeated by Merrimack College, 56-49, Saturday afternoon at Hammel Court.

Lorenzen shot 8 of 18 from the field, to go with four rebounds, three assists and five steals, which matched her career best.

Denia Davis-Stewart led Merrimack with 17 points, 16 rebounds and six blocks, while Mayson Kimball contributed 13 points and seven boards for the Warriors.

Southern New Hampshire scored the game's first five points and held a 7-5 edge with less than four minutes to play in the opening quarter when six straight points from Lorenzen gave the Penmen their largest lead of the day at 13-5 with 1:51 on the clock. Merrimack responded with six consecutive points to trim its deficit to 13-11 after one quarter of play.

SNHU opened the second stanza with seven of the first 10 points, including the first five from junior Brianna Camara (Fall River, Mass.), to extend its advantage to 20-14 more than three-and-a-half minutes in. Six points from Davis-Stewart and five from Kimball made up an 11-2 counter-run that put the Warriors into the lead at 25-22 with 2:38 left. They would bring a 27-25 edge into the break.

Following a back-and-forth opening eight-and-a-half minutes of the third quarter, the Penmen trailed by three when pairs of free throws from freshman Gyanna Russell (E. Hampton, Conn.) and senior Catherine Stinson (Lynn, Mass.) flopped SNHU into the lead at 38-37 going to the final frame.

After a trio of lead changes that left Southern New Hampshire with what would be its final lead of the contest at 45-44 less than three minutes in, Merrimack reeled off a game-closing 12-4 run – with five points from Davis-Stewart – to swipe the victory. Davis-Stewart's layup with 5:17 to play gave the hosts the lead for good at 47-45.

Sophomore Molly Terry (Shrewsbury, Mass.) netted eight points (3-7 FG, 2-4 3-FG) and grabbed a pair of rebounds. Camara posted seven points (3-9 FG, 1-5 3-FG), 10 rebounds and two assists, with Stinson tallying seven points (2-10 FG, 1-7 3-FG, 2-2 FT), four rebounds, three helpers, a block and a steal. Freshman Sarah Deyo (Attleboro, Mass.) chimed in with five points (1-3 FG, 3-4 FT), three rebounds, three steals and a pair of assists. Russell added four points (1-4 FG, 2-2 FT), two boards and two steals.

Notes:
-The Penmen, who had won four of six entering the day, remain locked in a third-place tie with crosstown-rival Saint Anselm College in the NE10 Northeast Division standings with three games to play.
-Merrimack outshot Southern New Hampshire, 41.7 percent (20-48) to 33.9 percent (19-56), including 30 percent (6-20) to 20 percent (4-20) from beyond the arc, while SNHU was better from the line, 87.5 percent (7-8) to 50 percent (10-20).
-The Penmen featured a better assist-to-turnover ratio (14/19-15/25), while the Warriors captured the glass (40-32) and paint (26-18).

Up Next:
The Penmen return to action Wednesday, Feb. 14 (5:30 p.m.) when they clash with crosstown-rival Saint Anselm College at the SNHU Arena in downtown Manchester in a contest that will air on FOX College Sports. Tickets are still available via Ticketmaster by visiting snhuarena.com.

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