Lewiston, Maine – March 1, 2024 – The Springfield College women's basketball team fell to Widener, 57-50, in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament at Bates College on Friday afternoon.
 
Appearing in the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament for the eighth time in program history, Springfield's season came to a close with a 22-6 record.  The Pride entered the national tournament receiving votes in the most recent D3hoops.com and WBCA National Polls and earned an at-large bid into the NCAA Championship for the second time in program history.

Angela Czeremcha (West Springfield, Mass.) produced 16 points and eight rebounds to pace Springfield, while Amanda Leary (Westbury, N.Y.) added 14 points and Claire Finney (Haverhill, Mass.) contributed 10 points and seven caroms.  It was a tale of two halves for Springfield, which shot 15-for-24 from field in the opening 20 minutes of play before going just 5-of-34 in the second half.

Leary connected on a driving lefty finish to push Springfield ahead 15-5 at the 3:55 mark of the opening quarter before Jaelen Daubon (Hyde Park, N.Y.) would snag a rebound and go coast-to-coast for a bucket to push the lead to 19-10 with under a minute to go.  Springfield would shoot 73% from the field in the first quarter, connecting on 8-of-11 attempts from the field and getting six points from both Czeremcha and Leary.

Springfield's cushion would grow to 33-19 at the 3:06 mark when Czeremcha finished inside off a great look from Leary, only to have Widener close the half on a 7-2 push to trim Springfield's halftime lead to 35-26. Springfield was again especially efficient on the offensive end, knocking down seven of its 13 attempts, with Czeremcha accounting for another six points.

In the third, Widener scored the first five points of the frame and manufactured a 13-2 run over the opening six-plus minutes to regain a 39-37 advantage.  Czeremcha responded with a bucket inside and the teams would trade three pointers, with Kassidy Carrano (West Haven, Conn.) cashing in on a wing triple to make it a 42-all game entering the fourth. 

With 4:01 left in regulation, Leary connected on a deep step-back just inside the arc to give Springfield its final lead of the night at 47-46. Widener responded with the next four points and would knock down 7-of-8 from the stripe in the final three minutes to complete their comeback.
  
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