WILLIAMSTOWN, MA 12/4/07 - The Keene State women's basketball team droppped its third straight game on Tuesday night a 72-56 non-conference loss to Williams College at Chandler Gym in Williamstown, Mass.

Completing a tough stretch of games that included games against Amherst, Southern Maine, and Williams, Keene State falls to 2-3.  Williams head coach Pat Manning recorded her 300th victory as the Ephs improve to 5-2.

The first half remained a tight affair at the start.  Keene State took a slight edge with five minutes left before Williams mounted a rally to nab a six-point lead heading into the locker room.  The Owls led 24-19 fourteen minutes into play.  Williams had been losing the battle on the boards and on the inside game before they shifted from man-to-man defense to a 2-3 zone, forcing Keene to take more shots from outside the arc.  Down 30-29 the Ephs began a 9-2 run capped off by a baseline jumper by Chessie Jackson with three seconds left to head into the second half leading 38-32.

While the first half was marred by mini-runs and trading baskets, the second half was a whole other ball game as Williams took control.  Peterman certainly knows how to get her team going, as she dropped a three on the opening possession of the second period for the second straight game.  The bucket gave the Ephs a nine point lead, and they never looked back.

The zone continued to be a successful defensive strategy for the Ephs, as Keene State's shooting percentage dropped from 44.4 percent in the first half to 20.7 percent in the second half.  Senior Niki Savageau's offensive play brought the Ephs lead to double digits.  With 12:18 to play, Savageau (9 points, 11 assists) penetrated inside and was successful on a difficult lay up to bring the score to 48-37.  In the ensuing play, the Eph point guard found Dominique de la Torre undefended under the basket.  The two plays by Savageau began a 9-0 run that brought the Ephs their biggest lead of the night at 57-37 with exactly ten minutes to play.

In the final minutes of play, Keene State upped the defensive intensity with a strong full court press.  Initially Williams struggled to keep possession of the ball, and began to make careless fouls, but eventually found success to hold onto a 72-56 victory.

Peterman, who leads the team with an average of 15.9 points per game, remained consistent with her 15 points for the night.  Chessie Jackson added 16 points and 7 boards, while Taylor Shea contributed 13 points and 5 rebounds.  Freshman Jessica Harris had a breakout game and recorded a double-double with 14 points and 10 points.  Harris was instrumental on the boards during the first half to get the Ephs going offensively. 

Nicole Simmler scored a game high 19 points for Keene State, and grabbed 9 boards.  Michelle Boudreau and Kristin Degou added 9 and 7 points respectively.

Keene State returns home to face LEC foe R.I. College on Saturday.  (1 p.m.).

(Courtesy Williams Sports Information)