WILMINGTON, N.C. – Despite a balanced offensive effort and a strong fourth-quarter push, the Northeastern women's basketball team (4-8, 0-1 CAA) fell just short in its Coastal Athletic Association opener, dropping a 69-67 decision to UNCW (5-7, 1-0 CAA) at Trask Coliseum on Friday night.
The Huskies had three players reach double figures, led by Justice Tramble, who recorded a career-high 18 points on an efficient 8-of-10 shooting from the field. Camryn Collins added 12 points while Yirsy Quéliz chipped in with 11 points, four rebounds and four assists.
Northeastern fought back from a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit, cutting UNCW's lead to 69-67 in the final minute. The Huskies' defense forced key turnovers down the stretch, but couldn't convert on the offensive end to complete the comeback.
The defensive effort was evident throughout the contest as Northeastern forced 15 UNCW turnovers, converting them into 21 points on the offensive end. The Huskies also dominated the paint, outscoring the Seahawks 50-28 in that category.
Northeastern struggled from beyond the arc, connecting on just 3-of-15 attempts from three-point range (20.0 percent). The Huskies shot 41.8 percent from the field overall while UNCW connected at a 48.1 percent clip.
The Huskies opened the game trailing 16-10 after the first quarter but battled back to narrow the deficit to 40-36 at halftime. UNCW extended its lead to 61-52 after three quarters before Northeastern mounted its late rally.
Tramble was particularly effective in the paint, grabbing five offensive rebounds and providing a consistent scoring threat inside. Collins reached double figures for the seventh time in 10 games this season, continuing her consistent play.
UNCW was led by Torin Rogers with 12 points while Kylah Silver and Icyss Storm each added 11 points. The Seahawks made 7-of-16 three-pointers (43.8 percent) and shot 75 percent from the free-throw line.
Northeastern outrebounded UNCW 38-32 and recorded 15 assists on 28 made field goals.
The Huskies will continue their conference road swing on Sunday, January 4, when they travel to Charleston for a 1 p.m. tipoff on FloCollege.
