Smithfield, R.I. –  The Robert Morris University women's basketball team held off a tough Bryant Bulldog team, 68-62, Wednesday night in the semifinal round of the 2015 Northeast Conference Women's Basketball Tournament presented by NRG Home Solar at Chace Athletic Center in Smithfield, R.I.. The win gives the Colonials a shot at its second consecutive NEC Championship and their fourth in the last nine seasons.
 
Robert Morris will host St. Francis Brooklyn in the NEC Championship game Sunday, March 15, in a 1:00 p.m. game at the Charles L. Sewall Center. The Terriers earned their chance to dance with a 71-62 win over top seed Central Connecticut State Wednesday night.
 
Rebeca Navarro led the Colonials with 17 points going 7-of-11 overall and nailing 3-of-6 from three-point range. Anna Niki Stamolamprou added 16 points on 7-of-14 shooting and added six rebounds and four assists to her game numbers.
 
"It was a hard fought battle, no question about it," said 12th year RMU head coach Sal Buscaglia. "I was a little concerned, and am still concerned a little bit, about the youth of our program. We only have one junior that plays a bunch of minutes and Jolie Olingende, a senior, has played more lately, but other than that, we're more freshmen and sophomore oriented.
 
"I'm very proud of how, even without that experience, they came together and hung through that adversity at the end and hit some key shots. Really proud of our kids, but our goal, just like every other team's goal, is to get to the NCAA Tournament and we have one more game to go to accomplish that"
 
 
The Colonials started the game with a three-pointer by Ravelli on the team's first possession and baskets by Smith and Stamolamprou quickly put the Colonials on top, 7-0. Bryant responded with a 7-0 surge and cut the Robert Morris lead to one-point, 15-14, when Tiersa Winder connected from long range.
 
Navarro stopped the Bulldogs push with a three-pointer, triggering a 16-4 run over the next 7:20. Five different players scored for the Colonials. Meanwhile, they held Bryant to 2-14 shooting during that same time frame, stretching a one-point lead to a 13-point advantage on Ravelli's second trey of the opening half. RMU shot 52 percent in the first half to carry a 34-20 lead into the break.
 
A three-pointer by Breanna Rucker, the NEC Player of the Year, trimmed the Robert Morris lead to eight points with just under 14 minutes to play. Navarro once again had the answer, a three-pointer from the left wing was followed by a traditional three-point play by Mikalah Mulrain that put the Colonials back in front by 14 points.
 
Midway through the half, however, the Bulldogs turned up the defensive pressure. Their trapping press forced RMU into seven turnovers over an eight minute span. Bryant took advantage with a 18-6 run that made it a three-point game, 55-52, with 3:25 to play.
 
A pair of shot clock beating jumpers by Stamolamprou on the next two possessions, including an NBA-range three-pointer, put the Colonials back in front by eight points. The Bulldogs cut the RMU lead to four points on a Dani Anderson three-pointer with 21 seconds remaining, but a pair of freebies by Megan Smith with three seconds left iced the game.
 
The Colonials overcame 22 turnovers with red hot shooting. RMU converted on 51 percent (26-51) of its shots including 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) from three-point range. Robert Morris also owned a 38-34 rebounding advantage against a Bryant team that came into the game with the best rebounding margin in the conference.
 
Bryant had four players with double-digit point totals led by Jenniqua Bailey's 18 points. Rucker added 14 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. Morgan Olander and Tiersa Winder each had 10 points.
 
Notes: Head coach Sal Buscaglia now owns a Northeast Conference record 17 wins in the NEC Tournament … With two three pointers Wednesday, Anna Niki Stamolamprou moved into second in RMU single-season records with 80 three-pointers … Ten different RMU players scored for the 12th times this season.