The Bowdoin College women’s basketball team will travel to Amherst this weekend for the 2017 New England Small College Athletic Conference semifinals.
The third-seeded Polar Bears will battle second-seeded Tufts in the semifinals on Saturday at 4 p.m. Top seeded Amherst will play sixth-seeded Colby in the other semifinal on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The semifinal winners will meet on Sunday at noon for the NESCAC Championship.
The Polar Bears punched their ticket into the semifinals for the 17th consecutive season by virtue of a 72- 47 quarterfinal win over sixth-seeded Connecticut College. Sophomore Abigail Kelly sparked an 11-2 run in the second quarter, allowing Bowdoin to take a 33-29 lead at the break.
In the third frame, the Polar Bears forced 11 turnovers and out-scored the Camels, 21-6. Bowdoin extended its lead to as many as 29 in the fourth quarter to ease to the victory.
Senior Marle Curle paced the Polar Bears with 13 points, while sophomore Taylor Choate added 10 points. Kate Kerrigan had a solid stat line with eight points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals to round out the top performers for Bowdoin.
Kerrigan leads a well-rounded offense, as no player on the roster averages more than nine points per game. The Polar Bears average 74.8 points per game, while giving up just 50.8 to opponents.
Bowdoin has won more NESCAC titles than any other team and has reached the final 10 times in the history of the tournament. Bowdoin claimed the first seven NESCAC championships from 2001-07 and added another title in 2009. The Polar Bears’ last trip to the championship game was in 2015.
Bowdoin owns a 4-2 advantage in the postseason series against Tufts. The two schools last met in the 2015 championship game, with the Jumbos earning a 68-52 victory. Bowdoin fell, 46-43, at Tufts on Jan. 6 in the NESCAC opener for both teams during the regular season.
Hockey quarterfinals
The Bowdoin College ice hockey teams will travel to play in a NESCAC quarterfinal doubleheader at Hamilton College on Saturday.
The women’s team (12-8-4) is seeded sixth, while the men’s team (8-15- 1) is seeded eighth.
The men’s game will get underway at Sage Rink at 1 p.m., while the women’s game is scheduled for 4 p.m.
Men
Hamilton (17-3-4, 11-3-4 NESCAC) is the top seed for the first time since 2011 and will host a quarterfinal contest for the second straight year. The Continentals went 11-0-2 to open the year and enter the tournament riding a five-game win streak on the strength of a defense that is allowing a league-low 1.58 goals per game.
If Hamilton is to make its first semifinal appearance since 2010, the Continentals must get past eighth-seeded Bowdoin (8-15-1, 5-12-1 NESCAC). The Polar Bears are making their 17th straight tournament appearance.
Bowdoin struggled during the second half of the season, but finished the regular season playing to a tie with Connecticut College.
In the regular season, Hamilton swept the two-game series against the Polar Bears, posting a 6-3 victory at home and earning a 3-1 road win on Feb. 4. The two teams will meet for the sixth time in tournament play. The Continentals own a 3-2 advantage in the series, and registered a win in the 2013 quarterfinals when the two teams last met in the postseason.
Women
Third-seeded Hamilton (14-7-3, 9-5-2 NESCAC) clinched its highest seed in program history and will host a quarterfinal contest for the first time since 2007, the same year the Continentals earned their last playoff victory and advanced to the semifinals.
Hamilton is unbeaten in seven of its last nine games and will host No. 6 Bowdoin (12-8-4, 7-6-3 NESCAC). The Polar Bears tied Amherst with a .531 winning percentage, but in head-to-head competition the Purple & White won the regular season series to grab the No. 5 seed.
Bowdoin is making its 16th straight appearance in the championship and is aiming for its seventh semifinal appearance in eight seasons. The Polar Bears went 4-2-2 in their last eight contests and are coming off a 1-1 tie and a 2-0 loss at Trinity in the final series of the regular season.
Bowdoin has won three NESCAC Championships, with the last coming in 2013. The Polar Bears are 2-0 against Hamilton in the postseason, but the squads haven’t squared off since the 2005 semifinals. During the regular season, the teams split the series with Bowdoin winning the first game, 2-1, and Hamilton answering with a 3-2 overtime victory in the second game.
Women’s squash
Bowdoin has learned its bracket for the upcoming College Squash Association Championship beginning today at Princeton University.
The Polar Bears (7-10) are ranked 19th nationally and have been placed in the Walker Cup (C-Division) for nationals.
Bowdoin was to open against 22ndranked William Smith College today at 10 a.m.
The semifinals scheduled for Saturday morning and the finals for Sunday.
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