BRUNSWICK — Following his team’s loss the Bates College women’s basketball team last month, UMaine-Farmington interim coach Nate Carson said of the Bobcats, “I wouldn’t be surprised that’s a ranked team by the end of things.”
The Bobcats made another such argument Wednesday night when they defeated rival Bowdoin, the nation’s fourth-ranked team, 74-70.
The victory is Bates’ first over Bowdoin since 2013.
The Bobcats (5-1) took control early, building a 21-8 lead by the end of the first quarter.
Meghan Graff powered Bates’ offense with 30 points, going 11 for 16 from the line, while Morgan Kennedy came off the bench to toss in 12 points. Ariana Dalia grabbed 14 rebounds and scored eight points, and Mia Roy contributed nine points.
Bates’ lead was 10 points at halftime and the end of the third quarter.
Bowdoin made a charge late in the fourth quarter, but it was too little, too late. Bates still held a nine-point lead with less than a minute remaining in the game before the Polar Bear hit a pair of late layups and a 3-pointer at the buzzer to decrease their deficit to four.
Reserve Sydney Jones let the way for Bowdoin with 28 points, Sela Kay chipped in 15 points and Callie Godfrey added 11.
DALIA HONORED
Bates’ Ariana Dalia, a senior, was selected as the NESCAC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week earlier this week.
Dalia averaged 10 points, 10 rebounds, 3.5 blocks and shot 69.2 percent from the field in the Bobcats’ two wins last week.
In a 72-62 win over the University of Southern Maine, Dalia tallied eight points, nine rebounds and four blocks. In the Bobcats’ 67-42 victory over Maine Maritime, she scored a team-high 12 points and pulled down 11 rebounds while blocking three shots and making three steals.
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