SCORE: Vermont 59, UAlbany 50
 
LOCATION: Patrick Gymnasium - Burlington, Vt.
 
RECORDS: UAlbany 19-5, 9-2 America East | 13-11, 8-2 America East
 
SHORT STORY: In a close game until the very end, the Great Danes held the lead through the second and third quarters but Vermont came away with the victory in Burlington, Saturday afternoon.
 
COACH COLLEEN MULLEN: "After Vermont got out to a quick start, I was proud of how we made adjustments and picked up our defensive focus. We had a few too many breakdowns in the fourth quarter to recover and get the road win. There's a lot to learn from and we will grow from this game."
 
KEY STATS

• Kayla Cooper led the team with 16 points and 10 rebounds. The graduate student tallied her 1763rd point to become second on the Great Danes' all-time scoring list. Only Shereesha Richards ('16) is ahead of Cooper with 2,440 points in her career.
• Graduate student Jessica Tomasetti followed with 13 points and seven rebounds while totaling a team-high four assists.
• Senior Meghan Huerter earned the only block for the team and graduate student Lilly Phillips led with two steals.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Vermont opened the game strong and gained an 8-2 lead in less than four minutes.
• Down 10-4 with 4:55 remaining in the first quarter, the Great Danes held off the Catamounts offense for over three minutes while ending the quarter with a 7-2 scoring run.
• Back and forth in the beginning of the second, UAlbany notched seven unanswered points after UVM tied the score at 16.
• The Catamounts answered with a scoring run of their own, however, it was smaller than the Great Danes' and UAlbany held on to the lead.
• Vermont's Catherine Gilwee made a buzzer-beater three-pointer to end the half with a one-possession Great Dane advantage, 29-27.
• In a defensive third quarter, the Catamounts attempted to take the lead but UAlbany held on, even gaining a multi-possession lead, 34-29, at 6:33.
• UVM did take the lead, 37-36, with a jumper at 3:18 but the Great Danes answered with a strong defense and two field goals on offense to end the quarter with a three-point advantage, 40-37.
• Vermont came out of the break and won back the lead within two minutes.
• After a three-pointer from Jessica Tomasetti and a couple of free throws from Kayla Cooper, the Great Danes had tied the score at 45. Cooper gave UAlbany what proved to be its final lead with a tip-in basket at 4:58.
• The team worked to gain back the advantage after an 8-1 scoring run from Vermont but they were unable to get the ball in the hoop until a final basket from graduate student Kaci Donovan made it a 59-50 decision in the Catamounts' favor.

 
NEXT: The Great Danes will return home to host UMass Lowell for their Commitment to Education game on Thursday (Feb. 13).
 
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