FINAL SCORE (OT): Central Connecticut 78, Vermont 76
NEW BRITAIN, Conn. – Candice Wright led all scorers with 19 points as the Vermont women's basketball team erased a 14-point deficit, but Central Connecticut used a 7-0 run midway through overtime to outlast the Catamounts 78-76 at Detrick Gym on Friday night.
 
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Following Friday's result, both teams are 1-2 on the season. The Catamounts forced 14 CCSU turnovers in the setback and converted that figure into 17 points.
 
"I'm proud of this team and the way they fought back," said head coach Chris Day. "We aren't in the business of moral victories, but when you fight like that when trying to revive a program, we can put this game as a foundation building block for sure."
 
After being faced with a 41-33 margin heading into halftime, UVM constructed a 6-0 run coming out of the break. Wright and Sydney Smith each made layups and freshman Hanna Crymble drained a jumper in the first two minutes to bring the Catamounts within two at 41-39. The Blue Devils responded with 12 unanswered points, however, building up their largest lead of the game and moving the score to 53-39 in CCSU's favor.
 
Vermont chipped away in the fourth quarter and even grabbed a three-point lead with under three minutes remaining in regulation. Wright's four points in the final three minutes of the period put the Catamounts ahead 68-66, but CCSU's Andi Lydon earned two points in the paint to knot things up at 68-apiece.
 
Smith then had a 3-point opportunity as time expired but could not get the shot to fall.
 
Both teams traded points in the early stages of overtime as Kallie Banker and Smith recorded baskets for Vermont. Despite this, the Blue Devils followed up each basket with a pair of free throws to bring the score back even and ultimately regained the lead for good when Lydon and Reynoso Giocelis combined to make three free throws.
 
All 10 players appearing for Central Connecticut had at least seven points on the night.
 
Vermont wraps up its weekend in The Constitution State with a Sunday (Nov. 20) contest at Yale, scheduled for 2 p.m.