Springfield, Mass. - February 28, 2015 - Despite a 15-point performance from sophomore guard Lexi Windwer (Milton, Mass.), the Springfield College women's basketball program fell to Babson, 64-57 in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championship semifinals on Saturday afternoon in Blake Arena.

With the win, the Beavers advance to the NEWMAC Championship to be held in Blake Arena on Sunday, March 1 at 1 p.m. Babson will face the winner of No. 2 Wheaton and No. 3 Coast Guard Academy.

After shooting just 8-for-29 in the first half, the Beavers were 11-for-26 in the second and 19-for-55 (34.5%) from the field on the contest in the victory. Springfield, who shot 14-for-28 (50%) in the first half, closed out the game shooting 8-for-22 (36.4%) from the field in the second stanza in the loss. 

Along with Graber's 19-point effort, senior guard Lindsey Roche (Arlington, Mass.) registered 12 points off the bench, while sophomore Giovanna Pickering (Hull, Mass.) tallied eight points and five rebounds in the win. 

For Springfield, Windwer notched a team-high 15 points on shooting 5-for-8 from three-point range, while junior guard Heather Lewis (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.)posted 14 points and six rebounds in the loss. 

Windwer gave the Pride an early 5-2 lead with a step-back three-pointer, before Lewis converted a deep two to push Springfield's lead to five, forcing a Babson timeout.

With just over 15:00 left in the first half, Windwer hit her second triple of the contest to give the Pride a 10-4 edge, before she found Emily Gins (Fort Myers, Fla.) underneath the basket on the ensuing possession for an easy bucket and a 12-4 lead, forcing a Beaver timeout with 14:04 remaining in the opening stanza.

Holding an 18-10 lead after another lay-up from Gins, sophomore center Ava Adamopoulos (Ludlow, Mass.) pushed Springfield's lead to 10 with a bucket in the post, before Graber cut Babson's deficit to seven with a three-pointer from the top of the arch.

After Lewis grabbed an offensive board and converted a lay-up to give the Pride a 26-13 lead, Windwer knocked down her third three-pointer of the half to push the Pride's lead to 16 with 5:31 remaining in the opening stanza. 

Five unanswered points from the Beavers, capped off by a lay-up in transition from Graber brought the Beavers to with in 11, but a mid-range jumper from Adamopoulos helped the Pride retain its 13-point edge heading into the halftime break.

Babson kicked off the second half with a pair of baskets from standout sophomore Pickering and Jennifer Narlee (Medfield, Mass.) to bring the Beavers back to within nine, before Windwer found senior captain Jaimie Bickelhaupt (Brookfield, Conn.) in the post for a basket, which brought Springfield's lead back to 11. 

From there, the Beavers scored six unanswered points, capped off by a pair of free-throws from Pickering to make it a five-point contest, before Taylor Russell (Braintree, Mass.) hit two from the line to make it 35-32, Springfield.

With 14:11 remaining in the contest, Adamopoulos knocked down two from the charity stripe to push the Pride's lead to five, before Russell and Kristen Ferola (Amherst, Mass.) hit back-to-back deep jumpers to make it a one-point game. 

A corner jumper from Graber gave Babson its first lead of the contest midway through the second half, before Ferola extended the Beavers' lead to four with a three-pointer at the top of the arch.

Sophomore guard Dina Pitsas (Milford, N.H.) cut the Pride's deficit to just two after hitting a pair from the free-throw line, before Graber drove to the center and lofted a shot over the defense to give the Pride back its four-point lead. 

Holding a 45-39 lead over Springfield with 8:03 remaining in the contest, Russell hit a pair from the line to extend the visitors' lead to eight. Gins then converted a pair of her own to make it a six-point contest, before Windwer hit a corner-three to bring Springfield back to within three. 

Lewis then brought the Pride to within one when she drove baseline and knocked down a lay-up underneath the basket with 5:20 left on the clock, before Roche and Bickelhaupt traded three-pointers on ensuing possessions to keep it close. 

On Babson's next possession, Roche hit another triple to make it 53-48, Beavers. Graber then found Pickering in the post for an easy lay-up to push the Beavers' lead to seven, before Lewis hit a mid-range jumper to bring Springfield back to within five with 1:53 left.

After Roche gave Babson a seven-point lead from the free-throw line, Windwer hit her fifth three-pointer of the game to cut Springfield's deficit to four. With 1:03 on the clock, Graber knocked down a pair from the charity stripe to make it 59-53, Babson. 

Converting its free-throws down the stretch, the Beavers advance to the Championship contest with a 64-57 win over Springfield.