LYNDONVILLE, Vermont - Despite trailing by as many as 11 points early in the third quarter, the University of Maine at Farmington women's basketball team stormed back to outduel a hot-shooting VTSU Lyndon squad on the road Saturday afternoon in North Atlantic Conference (NAC) action, 82-74.

The Records:

Farmington maintained its tie for the top spot in the NAC with the win, moving to 18-6 overall and 15-2 in conference play. With the loss, Lyndon dropped to 13-9 overall and 8-7 in NAC action.

How it Happened:

Lyndon's hot shooting began in the opening minutes of the first quarter. Skyler Begay drilled a deep three and then grabbed a steal and went coast-to-coast for a layup to put the Hornets ahead 7-2 just two and a half minutes in.

The Beavers, led by junior forward Jessica Dow (Saco, Maine), responded with a 7-2 run of their own to tie the game at nine apiece. Dow scored all seven points during the stretch, hitting 5-of-6 from the free throw line while also converting a three-point play.

Kadienne Whitcomb ended Dow's run with a deep three off a Farmington turnover. The triple was one of four Whitcomb hit in the first half.

Lyndon took an 18-13 lead into the second quarter after an Ella Huntington layup in the closing seconds of the first.

Audrey Mackie (South Thomaston, Maine) scored the Beavers' first five points of the second quarter to quickly pull Farmington within one. The teams went back-and-forth throughout the frame.

Lyndon sat in a zone defense for much of the quarter, and the Beavers did a solid job moving the ball and finding soft spots for quality looks. First-year forward Lilly Gray (Benton, Maine) was the primary beneficiary, scoring 12 of Farmington's 24 points in the quarter, doing most of her work inside the paint.

While Farmington found success inside, Lyndon caught fire from beyond the arc. The Hornets shot 6-of-10 from three in the quarter, including three from Whitcomb. Each time the Beavers closed the gap, Lyndon responded with a triple to maintain control.

Trailing 45-37 at halftime, Farmington needed a run to open the third quarter. Sophomore guard Jaydn Pingree (Jay, Maine) hit a layup on the opening possession, but another Begay three followed by a jumper from Huntington pushed the lead back to 11.

From there, back-to-back layups from Dow and Sarah Poli (Benton, Maine), followed by a Mackie three, trimmed the deficit to four with 6:41 left in the third.

After trading buckets midway through the quarter, Farmington used a second 7-0 run — highlighted by a three from the top of the key by Makayla Emerson (Bradley, Maine) and capped by a short-corner jumper from Ruby McMinis (Wells, Maine) — to take a 55-54 lead, its first since 2-0.

Kiara Mack scored five straight points, including a three-point play in the closing seconds of the third, to help the Hornets reclaim a 59-55 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

Nei-Shae Clegg opened the fourth with a three to extend Lyndon's lead to seven. Gray answered with a bucket in the paint on the ensuing possession, sparking an 8-3 spurt that pulled Farmington within two just under seven minutes to play.

After a pair of Huntington free throws, back-to-back buckets from Poli tied the game at 67. Two possessions later, after Clegg split a pair at the line to make it a one-point game, Dow secured an offensive rebound and was fouled, converting both free throws to give the Beavers the lead once again. A minute later, she hit a tough fallaway layup off a feed from Kytana Williamson (Nobleboro, Maine) to make it 71-68.

Lyndon had an answer once again. Begay canned another three on the ensuing possession to tie the game with three minutes remaining. A minute later, following a Beaver timeout, Emerson delivered an acrobatic reverse layup to put Farmington back in front. On the next possession, Pingree found the weak spot in the Hornets' zone and knocked down a mid-range jumper to give the Beavers a four-point lead — their largest of the game to that point.

After Clegg converted a three-point play, Williamson answered with a tough floater off the glass to make it 77-74 with 49 seconds remaining.

Farmington forced three misses and a turnover down the stretch and hit 5-of-6 from the free throw line to seal the victory.

Farmington:
Field Goal Pct: 45.5% (25-for-55)
Three-Point Pct: 18.8% (3-for-16)
Free Throw Pct: 70.0% (21-for-30)
Rebounds (Total, Off-Def): 48 (15-33)
Turnovers: 16

Lyndon:
Field Goal Pct: 40.6% (26-for-64)
Three-Point Pct: 45.8% (11-for-24)
Free Throw Pct: 57.9% (11-for-19)
Rebounds (Total, Off-Def): 37 (10-27)
Turnovers: 21

Leaders - Farmington:

• Dow did it all for the Beavers, finishing with 21 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, four steals, and three blocks. The double-double was her sixth of the season. She also shot 13-of-16 from the free throw line.
• Gray came off the bench to contribute 16 points on 8-of-14 shooting in 16 minutes, adding five rebounds and three assists.
• Pingree also reached double figures with 15 points on 6-of-14 shooting, while pulling down seven rebounds in 32 minutes.

Leaders - Lyndon:

• Begay led the Hornets with 17 points, hitting 5-of-9 from beyond the arc, while adding six assists, four rebounds, and three steals.
• Whitcomb finished with 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting from three.
• Keira Quintal added 12 points and six rebounds, shooting 6-of-8 from the field in 17 minutes off the bench.
• Huntington and Mack each scored 11 points. Huntington added six assists and five rebounds, while Mack contributed eight rebounds, two blocks, and two steals.

UP NEXT

The Beavers will host Maine Maritime Academy next Saturday at 3:00 p.m. in their regular-season finale. The winner of that matchup will earn the top seed in the upcoming NAC Tournament.