UNIONTOWN, Pa. — For the second time in three years, the Central Maine Community College women’s basketball team is the USCAA Division 2 champion.

Kristin Huntress and Brooke Reynolds scored 17 points apiece, and the Mustangs held off Villa Maria of Buffalo, New York, for an 85-78 victory in the national championship game Wednesday.

The Mustangs pulled away from a 12-all tie with a 12-0 run and led 35-16 after one quarter.

Jordyn Reynolds added 14 points for CMCC (28-2), while Alex Bessey chipped in with 12, including a key 3-pointer in the final minute. Natalie Thurber contributed 10 points off the bench.

Villa Maria finished 25-3.

CMCC also won the title in 2017, and lost in the final to Johnson & Wales-Charlotte last season.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

(10) LSU 79, FLORIDA 78: Tremont Waters dribbled the length of the court for the tying basket with 3 seconds remaining in regulation and then hit a 3-pointer early in overtime, helping the Tigers (25-5, 15-2, Southeastern) escape with a victory at Florida (17-13, 9-8).

SETON HALL 73, (16) MARQUETTE 64: Myles Powell scored 34 points and Seton Hall (17-12, 8-9 Big East) beat Marquette (23-7, 12-5) at Newark, New Jersey, closing with an 18-0 run to revive its NCAA tournament hopes.

SKIING

NCAA NORDIC CHAMPIONSHIPS: Seven skiers with Maine ties placed among the top 40 Wednesday in Stowe, Vermont.

In the 5-kilometer women’s skate race, Bates junior Kaelyn Woods placed 30th, Bowdoin sophomore Renae Anderson 31st and Colby sophomore Marin Coletta 40th. Julie Richter of Utah won the race in 13 minutes, 28.3 seconds.

Woods is a graduate of Gray-New Gloucester High.

In the 10K men’s race, Colby senior Zane Fields earned all-America honors with a seventh-place finish. Elliot Ketchel of Bowdoin was 18th. Williams senior Braden Becker, a Yarmouth High graduate, placed 29th and Middlebury senior Sam Wood, a graduate of Mt. Ararat High in Topsham, placed 33rd.

Colorado’s Erik Olsvik Dengerud won the race in 24:25.6.

BASEBALL

ST. JOSEPH’S 6, DESALES 5: Joey Murphy hit a go-ahead double in the eighth inning to lift the Monks (4-0) over the Bulldogs (3-2) in Winter Haven, Florida.

St. Joseph’s capitalized on three early errors by DeSales and held a 5-1 lead after the third. Charlie Barebo hit RBI singles in the fifth and sixth innings to help DeSales rally to tie the game.

SOFTBALL

AURORA 11, ST. JOSEPH’S 1: Elaine Walker hit a three-run homer in the third and finished with four RBI to lead the Spartans (3-3) over the Monks (1-4) in five innings at Plant City, Florida.

Maizie Lee hit an RBI single for St. Joseph’s in the fourth.

ST. JOSEPH’S 7, BLUFFTON 6: Bailey Rassol drove in three runs, and the Monks (2-4) held off a rally to beat Bluffton (2-4) in their second game Wednesday.

Rassol’s two-run single in the second put St. Joseph’s up 5-0.

Libby Pomerleau and Meghan Elliott each had three hits and two RBI for the Monks.

MEN’S LACROSSE

ST. JOSEPH’S 12, WENTWORTH 10: Zack Hamilton had four goals and the Monks (2-2) used a late rally to beat the Leopards (2-2) in Davenport, Florida.

St. Joseph’s went on a 4-0 run in the final 17:20. Devin Linscott scored twice, and Hamilton got the go-ahead goal with 7:05 left.

WOMEN’S LACROSSE

BABSON 17, BATES 6: Lexi Lenaghan scored seven goals and the Beavers (2-1) beat the Bobcats (3-1) in Wellesley, Massachusetts.

Katie Allard and Kathryn Grennon each scored two goals for Bates.