Senior Kelsey Simonds led the Skyhawks with 16 points, six rebounds and four blocked shots - including one to clinch the win in the final seconds.

Stonehill Edges Bentley, 55-53

McWhirter drains two free-throws with six-seconds left and Simonds blocks key shot at the buzzer as Skyhawks earn third seed for upcoming NE-10 Tournament

Boxscore 

WALTHAM, Mass. (February 24, 2010) - Junior guard Kristen McWhirter (Melvin Village, N.H./New Hampton Prep) drained two free-throws with six seconds left in regulation to lift Stonehill College, ranked fifth in the most recent NCAA Division II East Regional rankings, to a key 55-53 triumph over rival Bentley University, among team's receiving votes in this week's USA Today/ESPN/Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II poll and ranked fourth in the region, in the Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball regular season finale at the Dana Athletic Center tonight.

Stonehill (21-8, 16-6 NE-10) finishes in a tie with Bentley (18-9, 16-6 NE-10) in the Conference standings, but have earned the No. 3 seed for the upcoming NE-10 Tournament by way of their regular season win over Pace University, who defeated Bentley, in January. The Skyhawks will host a quarterfinal round matchup on Tuesday, March 2, in Merkert Gymnasium at 7 p.m., awaiting the winner of Sunday's first round battle between sixth-seeded Assumption College and 11^th-seeded Southern New Hampshire University. Admission to Tuesday's game will be $7.00 for adults, $4.00 for students and senior citizens, with students with valid college ID admitted for $1.00.

Senior Kelsey Simonds (Middleboro, Mass./Cardinal Spellman) led Stonehill with 16 points (12 second half) as she made 5-of-8 shots from the field and converted all six free-throws to go with six rebounds and four blocked shots - including a rejection of Bentley junior Kim Brennan (Locust Valley, N.Y./Locust Valley) at the buzzer after McWhirter's free-throws to clinch the Skyhawks' fourth-straight win heading into postseason play.

Junior Kristen McWhiter drained two free-throws with six-seconds left to hold off the Falcons rally.

Sophomore Tania Williams (South Setauket, N.Y./Ward-Melville) was the only other Stonehill player in double-figures with a career-high matching 14 points (ten first half) on 6-of-9 shooting from the field, draining both free-throw attempts, to go with a game-high matching seven rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench. McWhirter finished with four points, but dished five assists and added a career-best five steals, while senior Erin Gray (Clifton Park, N.Y./Shenendehowa) chipped in a game-high matching seven boards.

Brennan led Bentley with a game-high 20 points (11 first half) on 7-of-14 shooting from the field, including 3-for-5 from three-point range, while converting 3-of-4 free-throws to go with four rebounds and four assists. Senior Dedra Pritchard (Lake Hopatcong, N.J./Jefferson Township) came off the bench to add 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field, converting her lone free-throw attempt, to go with six rebounds (four offensive) and two steals. Senior Colette Josey (Boston, Mass./Framingham) chipped in with seven points, six boards (four offensive) and two steals.

Both teams finished shooting below 40-percent on the night as Stonehill made 35.6-percent (21-for-59) of its shots from the field, including 3-of-15 (20%) from three-point range, while going a perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line. Bentley shot 39.6% (21-53) from the field, including 5-for-13 (38.5%) from three-point range, while making 6-of-9 (66.7%) free-throws. The Falcons finished with a 39-29 advantage in rebounding for the contest, but turned the ball over 23 times, compared to 13 for the Skyhawks who posted a critical 24-7 scoring advantage in points off turnovers.

A Brennan jumper with 42-seconds left in regulation capped a 6-0 spurt over a nearly three-minute stretch that pulled Bentley from a four-point deficit (51-47) with 3:21 to play into a two-point lead (53-51). Simonds was fouled at the other end and made both free-throws to knot the score at 53-53. Brennan missed at the other end and Rousseau came away with the key defensive rebound before finding McWhirter at the other end where she was fouled going to the basket to set up the winning free-throws with six seconds left. 

Sophomore Tania Williams matched her career-high with 14 points to go with a game-high matching seven rebounds.

Bentley's largest lead of the night came early, scoring the first five points of the game and then holding a 7-2 advantage after a Josey layup 2:05 into the contest. Stonehill reeled off an 18-3 run over the next eight minutes to erase that early deficit and open a ten-point lead (20-10) after two free-throws from Simonds with 11:42 left in the half. Williams netted six points during that stretch for the Skyhawks.

The teams traded baskets over the next seven minutes, until Bentley closed within three at the break with an 11-4 run over the final 7:36. After both teams went scoreless for nearly four minutes, Pritchard sparked the closing run with a three-point play and had five points in all in that stretch.

Stonehill regained a nine-point lead (40-31) after a Megan Methven (Corning, N.Y./Corning East) jumper in the paint with 13:09 left in regulation that capped an 8-2 run. Bentley followed with nine-straight points to knot the score at 40-40 after a jumper by Pritchard with 10:46 to play. The Skyhawks answered with a three by Methven and Williams layup to push their lead back to five (47-42) with 5:47 left, but the Falcons made one last run to take their late lead before Stonehill clinched their fourth fourth-straight win.

Bentley will also host a quarterfinal on Tuesday, facing the winner of Sunday's opening round game between fifth-seeded College of Saint Rose and 12^th-seeded Merrimack College, at the Dana Center at 7 p.m.