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Moon Township, Pa. / Charles L. Sewall Center – Senior forward Artemis Spanou (Rhodes, Greece / Nea Smyrni) came within two assists of a triple-double as she led the Robert Morris University women's basketball team to the Northeast Conference Tournament championship game courtesy of a 72-67 victory against Bryant at the Charles L. Sewall Center Wednesday night.
 
It marks the Colonials first trip to an NEC final since 2008 when they won their second of back-to-back league championships. RMU also reached the 20-win plateau improving to 20-11 overall, the sixth 20-win season under the tutelage of 11th year head coach Sal Buscaglia.
 
"These kids are so resilient. I knew that we would have to hit some shots at the end and we managed to knock down a couple of tough shots in the final couple minutes," said Buscaglia. "I really love this team, I really do. I've been coaching 37 years, and these 12 kids are tremendous. I can't think of a team that I've enjoyed coaching as much as this group of young ladies."
 
Spanou, the two-time NEC Player of the Year, led all players with 24 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists. She went 10-of-15 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the charity stripe. Freshman forward Cassie Oursler (Grand Island, N.Y. / Grand Island) added 13 points and freshman Rebeca Navarro (Galicia, Spain / Las Siege Palmas) tacked on 10 points off the bench. Freshman Anna Niki Stamolamprou (Thessaloniki, Greece / Aristotelio College of Thessaloniki) and sophomore Ashley Ravelli (Milano, Italy / The Hun School) had nine and eight points, respectively.
 
With just 2:33 to go and the outcome still in doubt after Bryant (17-14) pulled to within two points, 66-64, Spanou put the full depth of her talent on display. The senior buried a 15-foot jumper as the shot clock wound down. On the ensuing Bulldogs possession, she blocked a shot and corralled the rebound before Navarro hit a 10-footer as the shot clocked neared zero to give the Colonials a six-point advantage.
 
It was a lead a lead RMU would not give up. Bryant's Breanna Rucker scored on a lay-up with 17 seconds showing, but Ravelli managed to knock down a pair of freebies that pushed the lead back to six points and iced the game for the Colonials.
 
Robert Morris doubled up Bryant early on as Oursler scored seven consecutive points to give RMU a 12-6 lead. The Bulldogs tied the game at 15, but then Spanou scored the next nine points for the home squad and the Colonials went back on top by three points. Back-to-back three-pointers by Navarro and Ravelli put RMU up by 11 points, a lead they would hold until the 4:09 mark when Spanou was forced to the bench with two first half fouls.
 
The Bulldogs took advantage, going on an 11-0 run over the final 3:55 to send the game into the break tied, 34-34.
 
Tiersa Winder and Courtney Schissler combined for 33 points and 10 three-pointers as the Bulldogs hit a season-high 12 treys. Winder finished with 18 points and Schissler 15. Naana Ankoma-Mensa just missed out on a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds.
 
Robert Morris will meet Keystone State-rival Saint Francis University in the title tilt Sunday, March 15. Tip-off is slated for 3:00 p.m. The Red Flash earned their way into the championship game with a 68-63 win at Mount St. Mary's Wednesday. The Colonials and Red Flash split their two meetings this season, each winning on their home court.