MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – Babson College closed the game on an 11-4 push to turn a two-possession game into a 63-50 victory over the Keene State College women's basketball team in the opening contest of the Middlebury College Tip-Off Classic Saturday afternoon at Pepin Gymnasium.

Records

• Keene State:  2-1
• Babson:  2-0

How It Happened
Rylee Burgess and Hailey Derosia combined for 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting and 11 rebounds, but the Owls could not overcome 25 turnovers as they fell for the first time this season and to Babson in the first ever meeting between the two sides.  The Beavers, who are fifth in the receiving votes category of the d3hoops.com Top 25 preseason poll, were forced into 19 miscues themselves but still accumulated a 21-8 edge in points off turnovers, the exact differential in the game.  Kelly Walsh made 8-of-17 shots en route to a game-high 16 points.  Camilla Silk added 10 while taking three shots from the field (3-3 FG, 4-6 FT).  For the Owls, Derosia finished with 10 on 3-of-6 shooting (2-of-3 from deep), four rebounds, and three steals in 19 minutes.  Aryanna Murray chipped in eight points (4-8 FG) and three rebounds off the bench.

Keene State got off to a flying start in the game, shooting 57 percent in the opening 10 minutes to build a 20-17 lead after one, but Babson took a six-point halftime lead after a 20-11 second quarter where they shot 62 percent (8-for-13).  The Owls clamped down out of the locker room, holding the Beavers to six points while making only three of 15 shots from the field to get within 40-37 after three, but Babson again rebounded substantially in the final 10 minutes, making 9-of-13 shots to pull away.  They began the period on a 9-3 burst to open up a nine-point lead (52-43) with 6:49 to go, but the Owls did get an answer from Derosia to get within 52-46 with 5:50 left.  KSC went cold after that, missing three consecutive shots to go along with four turnovers while falling into a 10-point hole with three minutes left that Babson was able to close out without much trouble.  The Owls made 11-of-32 from the field over the final three quarters and 2-of-8 from long range, scoring 30 points combined after the 20-point opening period.

Inside the Paint

• Babson, who has made six NCAA tournament appearances since 2010 and the Sweet 16 three times in that span, was picked to win the competitive NEWMAC in the preseason poll, edging out 23rd-ranked Smith College and Springfield College.  Keene State will also take on Smith after Christmas.
• Derosia has made 17 of her last 34 (50 percent) three-point shots dating back to the beginning of last year's shortened campaign.  She has made 17-of-30 overall (57 percent) from the floor this season in three games.

Up Next

• The Owls take on host Middlebury College (1-0) tomorrow, Sunday, November 14 at 3:00 p.m.  The Panthers opened their season with an 87-29 rout of Clarkson University today.
• Babson plays Clarkson (0-1) at 1:00 p.m. to conclude both teams' tournaments in the first matchup Sunday.