BOX SCORE Box Score

WEST HAVEN, Conn. – The tandem of Anh-Dao Tran and Lauren Biovin combined for 36 points on Tuesday evening; however, the University of New Haven women’s basketball team dropped a Northeast-10 Conference match-up to Southern New Hampshire, 72-56, at Charger Gymnasium.

With the loss, the Chargers dropped to 2-16 on the season and 1-13 in NE-10 competition. The Penmen, now winners of their last three games and seven of their last eight, improved to 10-8, 8-6 in the league.

Southern New Hampshire controlled the edge in several statistics, but not by much. The Penmen connected on 46 percent of their field goals, turned the ball over 11 times and pulled down 40 rebounds. The Chargers finished 40 percent from the floor, tallied 15 turnovers and hauled in 35 rebounds. The key statistic of the game came from the charity stripe, as the Penmen finished 17-of-22 compared to 1-of-2 from the hosting Chargers.

Tran led the way offensively for UNH, registering 20 points for the second consecutive game. She tossed in 20 points, collected nine rebounds and four assists. Boivin added a career-high with 16 points, going 7-of-11 from the field with five rebounds. Nicole Pollard was also effective on offense, as the senior guard compiled nine points and five assists.

The first half featured stellar defense from both teams. The two teams combined for 17 turnovers and a shooting percentage of less than 38 percent. Unfortunately, after an evenly matched contest for the majority of the stanza, Southern New Hampshire closed the half on an 11-0 run, granting the Penmen a 29-22 lead at the break.

New Haven managed to keep the score within striking distance due to proficient shooting from long distance. Four different Chargers connected from behind the arc, accounting for more than half of the team’s points. Pollard, Tran and Boivin paced the offense with five points apiece, while Olivia DeMarco controlled the boards with five. Southern New Hampshire’s Julia Houghtaling led all scorers at the break with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting.

After the intermission, New Haven opened the second half with a 9-4 run, cutting its deficit to just two points. Tran and Pollard ignited the surge with back-to-back shots, as Boivin knocked down a lay-up and then another from downtown during the rally.

Despite the quick start, Houghtaling and the Penmen responded with an 11-0 run to regain the lead. New Haven frantically fought to stop the bleeding, but SNHU repeatedly knocked down key baskets to disallow the Chargers back into the game.

Houghtaling finished with a game-high 32 points and 11 rebounds for the Penmen in the triumph.

The Chargers return to action on Saturday, January 29 with an away game at Merrimack College. The game is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m.