The University of Maine Presque Isle women’s basketball team earned its first victory of the season Monday, traveling to the University of Maine at Machias (4-6) and coming away with a 63-41 win.
The home team started off the night hot and took a 15-13 lead in the first quarter. The Owls changed the momentum in the second quarter, hitting seven of their 14 field goal attempts while clamping down defensively and only allowing the Clippers to score nine points. A 19-2 run to start that period sent them to the locker room with a 32-24 lead.
The Clippers (4-6) closed the gap a bit in the third, but the Owls strong defensive rebounding put them ahead by 19 entering the final quarter. Neither team shot the ball well in the fourth period, but the Owls had a big enough lead to cruise to the victory.
Freshman Rhylee Wright had a big night by picking up her first collegiate double-double with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Amanda Hotham put up 16 points and collecting eight rebounds and Sydney Churchill added 11 points to the effort.
On Saturday, Maine Maritime Academy Mariners pulled away in the second half to claim their second victory over the Owls this season. MMA (4-1) kept up its full court pressure throughout the contest and won 96-46.
The teams looked to be evenly matched in the early going as the Owls grabbed a one-point lead with 4:30 left in the first quarter. A scoring drought of 7:30 by UMPI put the Mariners on top by 10, but the Owls fought back in the second quarter. It appeared that the game was going to go into intermission with a single-digit deficit, but a buzzer-beating shot by Alayne Felix put MMA in front, 29-18.
The Mariners got hot in the third quarter, hitting 11 of 20 field goal attempts, and the Owls were not able to keep pace. Six fourth-quarter turnovers sealed the fate of UMPI as the Mariners would continue on their torrid shooting pace. MMA continued to flex its defensive muscle down the stretch and won going away.
Emilia Churchill scored 10 points for UMPI. Hotham and Wright ended with seven points and four rebounds each.
Felix paced the Mariners with 18 points and five rebounds.
The 1-5 Owls take a break and then head to Pennsylvania for the Hilton Poinsettia Tournament hosted by the University of Scranton. They will tip off against Stockton at 6 p.m. on Dec. 17.
