The Bowdoin-Colby rivalry is a special one in college sports, where a fan may see brother versus brother, or sister battling sister. There are even households where one may have attended Colby and is a die-hard Mules fan, where the spouse went to Bowdoin and claims the black and white of the Polar Bears.
“We expect a battle every time with them and I obviously love their coaching staff,” said Bowdoin coach Adrienne Shibles after her Polar Bears rolled to a 71-30 rout of the Mules.
Bowdoin improved to 14-3 overall, 4-2 in the NESCAC, while Colby fell to 9-9, 2-4 in the conference.
After a tight opening four minutes, Bowdoin put together an 8-0 run to turn a 7-6 deficit into a 14-7 advantage. Emily Campbell gave the Polar Bears the lead for good, and Abigail Kelly came off the Bowdoin bench and immediately nailed a 3- pointer to make for an 11-7 contest. After a Colby timeout, Lauren Petit, who had just entered the game as well, hit a trey to finish the run.
“We felt like we are very confident in our shooting abilities and being able to share the ball,” said Petit of herself and Kelly. “We try to bring a spark and today we did. Every single day we practice really hard and go 100 percent. We came in today really focused.”
Petit stepped up again to open the second quarter with a second 3-pointer, igniting a 7-0 run for a 21-9 Bowdoin lead.
“Lauren gives us 18 minutes and some nice baskets, something that we needed,” said Shibles, whose Polar Bears visit UMass-Boston on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Colby righted the ship, receiving eight first-half points from Haley Driscoll to close to 27-18.
From there, Bowdoin took off again, running off the final 11 points of the half. Kelly scored five points in the run to finish with a team-high 10 points in the first half, and a steal and basket by freshman Sam Roy gave the Polar Bears a big 38-18 advantage at the intermission.
Bowdoin shot 61.5-percent in the first half (16-of-26) and held Colby to just 29.2-percent (7-of-24) from the field.
Run continues
There was no stopping Bowdoin on this day. The Polar Bears opened the second half by scoring the first eight points, building a 30- point lead, 48-18 after four straight points from Rachel Norton.
On two occasions, Sydney Hancock guarded cousin Sarah Hancock. Sydney seemed to get the better of her younger cousin, with four assists and two steals.
Petit wasn’t through. She made her third of four 3- pointers to close the third quarter for a 53- 23 Bowdoin advantage, and left the game in style with her fourth trey early in the fourth as Bowdoin’s lead grew to 65-26.
Of the 15 Polar Bears who saw action, 13 scored, led by Petit’s 14 points. Kelly scored all 10 of her points in the first half and grabbed four rebounds and dished out three assists.
“Going into every game in the NESCAC, you know it is going to be a battle, so I am really pleased with this win,” said Shibles. “ Everyone contributed today.”
As far as seeing her former teammate on the Colby bench?
“You always know Colby will bring its best, and Shannon knows how to scout us having been with us so long,” said Petit, who added three rebounds to help Bowdoin finish with a 34-27 edge on the boards.
Norton, Marle Curle and Campbell had six points apiece for Bowdoin, which also received five points from Taylor Choate, and four each from Maddie Hasson, Ally Silfen, Olivia Ware and Cordelia Stewart. Curle had a team-high five caroms and dished out three assists. Kate Kerrigan also had three assists.
Defensively, Bowdoin held Colby to just 25-percent shooting (11-of-44) for the game and forced 24 turnovers.
Bowdoin 71,
Colby 30
Saturday, Morrell Gymnasium in
Brunswick
Colby— 9957—30
Bowdoin — 14 24 15 18 — 71
Colby — Katie McCrum 2-0-5, Haley
Driscoll 4-2-10, Ainsley Burns 2-0-5,
MK Caverly 1-0-3, Emily Davis 0-0-0,
Caitlyn Nolan 1-0-3, Paige Russell 0-
2-2, Sarah Hancock 0-0-0, Cameron
Kelso 0-0-0, Jackie Albanese 0-0-0,
Jane MacKerron 1-0-2. Totals — 11-
4-30.
Bowdoin — Kate Kerrigan 1-0-2,
Rachel Norton 2-2-6, Marle Curle 3-
0-6, Lydia Caputi 1-0-2, Emily Campbell 3-0-6, Sydney Hancock 0-0-0,
Sam Roy 1-0-2, Taylor Choate 2-1-5,
Lauren Petit 5-0-14, Hannah Cooke
1-0-2, Maddie Hasson 2-0-4, Ally Silfen 2-0-4, Abigail Kelly 3-2-10, Olivia
Ware 2-0-4, Hannah Graham 0-0-0,
Cordelia Stewart 2-0-4. Totals — 30-
5-71.
3-point field goals — (C) McCrum,
Burns, Caverly, Nolan; (B) Petit 4,
Kelly 2.
Records — Bowdoin 14-3, 4-2
NESCAC; Colby 9-9, 2-4 NESCAC.
Up next for the Polar Bears — Tuesday at UMass-Boston, 7 p.m.
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