Hartford, Conn. - Freshman center Nicole Wurdeman (Rowley, Mass.) had 15 points, six rebounds, three steals, and three blocked shots to lead the visiting Babson College Beavers to a 54-45 win over the Trinity College Bantams in women's basketball action this evening at Oosting Gymnasium.  Trinity, one of just five undefeated teams in NCAA Division III entering the game, falls to 11-1, while the Beavers improve to 8-5.

Babson pulled away in the middle of the second half, after using a 22-13 first-half edge on the boards to take a 26-23 lead into the break.  Babson put up six quick points after the break and outscored Trinity, 18-8, over the first 10 minutes to lead, 44-31.  Trinity fought its way back with 10 of the game's next 11 points, including back-to-back treys by freshman guard Kaitlin Ciarleglio (Waterbury, Conn.), to pull within four points at 45-41 at the three-minute mark, but the second of a pair of three-pointers in the second half by Wurdeman put the Beavers back ahead by seven.  The teams combined for just one field goal over the final 2:50 of the game, including six Babson free throws to put the game away.

Babson won despite committing 24 turnovers, 17 in the first half, by outboarding the Bantams, 44-30, and holding Trinity to 31.5 percent field goal shooting.  Trinity also missed seven of 15 tries from the foul line and made just only three shots from beyond the arc in 15 attempts.  Junior co-captain guard Claire Arnstein (Hicksville, N.Y.) led the Bantams with 15 points and added three assists, and three steals, while Ciarleglio had 14 points and four steals, and junior forward Christine Card (Waterbury, Conn.) notched seven boards and three blocked shots.  Beaver freshman forward Kathleen King (Framingham, Mass.) finished with 12 points and a game-high 11 rebounds, while sophomore guard Kristy Benoit (Shrewsbury, Mass.) contributed seven points, six rebounds, three assists, and five steals off the Babson bench. 

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