By Sarah Metcalf
The woes of the women’s basketball team continued last week, as they dropped games to both America East leader Maine and New Hampshire, resulting in a four-game losing streak and a slump that they can’t seem to snap out of.
Northeastern’s recent struggles have dropped them to 9-8 overall and a disappointing 3-5 in the America East conference.
The Huskies looked to relieve their recent scoring drought when they traveled to New Hampshire to take on the Wildcats on Saturday.
NU battled hard throughout the game, fighting back from deficits as big as eight to tie the game 45-45 with eight minutes left. However, UNH went on a 10-2 run in the last seven minutes to tarnish Northeastern’s hopes of a come-from-behind victory. NU eventually fell 58-52.
Sophomore Maralene Zwarich led Husky scoring with 14 points, and junior Francesca Vanin picked up her third double-double of the season, scoring 10 points and grabbing 10 boards. Maren Matthias led Wildcat scoring, tallying 14 points. Ray Williams also picked up a double-double for UNH, with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
The Huskies attempted to rebound from a tough overtime loss to Boston University against Maine last Wednesday. However, the troubles continued, as they fell 72-55. The Huskies had a slow start, and despite consistent scoring later in the game and attempting to cut the deficit, Maine held control throughout the game, cruising to an easy win.
Junior Francesca Vanin led Husky scorers with 17 points and recorded seven rebounds. Sophomore Michelle Decerbo finished with 10 points, and senior Joi Jefferson had nine points and seven rebounds of her own. Melissa Heon led all scorers with 18 points, and Heather Ernest fell a rebound short of a double-double with 17 points and nine rebounds.
Turnovers have proved to be a major factor in the Huskies’ recent losing streak.
“We’re turning the ball over a little too much, and we’re really not doing as good of a job on the boards,” said coach Willette White. “You can’t score when you turn the ball over — everything goes hand-in-hand. When you’re turning the ball over, you’re taking away scoring opportunities. We’re 8-1 when we have 15 or less turnovers. We just need to start taking of the basketball.”
The Huskies pick up action on Wednesday night when they travel to Stony Brook to take on the Seawolves. It’s the first of the teams’ two game series. Last season, NU and Stony Brook split with each group winning on its home turf. Tip off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
