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            BIDDEFORD, Maine -- Freshman guard Erin McNamara (West Newbury, Mass./Pentucket Regional) knocked down a three pointer and junior forward Courtney Cochran (Waite, Maine/Wood-land) sank two free throws in the final two minutes of regulation to lead the second-seeded University of Southern Maine Huskies to a heart-stopping, 54-53 win over the third-seeded Endicott College Gulls in the second semifinal game of the 2011 ECAC Division III New England Women's Basketball Championship Tournament Saturday night at the University of New England's Campus Center Gymnasium.

            With the win, Southern Maine improves to 18-10 and advances to the championship game of the tournament.  USM will face the University of New England, a 64-58 winner over WPI, on Sunday (2:00 p.m.).  Despite holding a 54-3 edge in the all-time series between the two schools, Southern Maine has lost its last two encounters with UNE.  Endicott finished its season 17-10.

            Cochran led the Huskies with 14 points, while McNamara added 11 points, two assists, two steals and a pair of rebounds.  Senior forward Becky Dixon (Gardiner, Maine) contributed 10 points and three rebounds coming off the bench.  Junior guard Renee Nicholas (Sebago, Maine/Lake Region) chipped in nine points, five rebounds and four steals. 

            Senior guard Ashley Wright (Merrimack, N.H.) led the Gulls with 14 points, including four, second-half three-pointers.  Senior center Ashley Vitale (Wilmington, Mass.) scored 13 points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds.  Freshman guard Jennifer White (Lisbon, N.H.) chipped in with 10 point and nine rebounds. 

            The Huskies found themselves trailing, 51-50, with 3:28 to play as Gulls mounted a furious 15-1 comeback run over a seven-and-a-half minute span.  Wright was zeroed in on the basket from deep canning three consecutive 3-pointers for nine of the Gulls points in the run.  Vitale, who scored four points in the run, knocked down the go-ahead basket after an assist from Wright.

            As hot as the Gulls were, the Huskies were ice cold, making just one free throw while misfiring on seven field goal attempts and turning the ball over five times.

            As neither team was shooting particularly well in the second half, the score stalled at 51-50 for the next minutes and 15 seconds, as the teams combined for an 0-for-4 mark from the field.  McNamara broke the drought and put the Huskies ahead stroking a three-pointer from the top of the circle for a 53-51 lead with 1:46 to play. 

            Both teams misfired on their ensuing possessions, but the Gulls kept the ball for nearly 40 seconds coming up with four consecutive offensive rebounds.  Wright made it to the free throw line with 16 seconds to play and missed the front end of a one-and-one situation, before her team came up with its fifth straight offensive board.  However, McNamara stepped into the passing lane and came up with a huge steal to return the ball to the Huskies. 

            After a timeout, the Huskies' Cochran was fouled and calmly sank two free throws for a 55-51 USM lead with eight seconds to play.  However, the Gulls were able to pull to within a point on a White three-pointer with two seconds to play, but were unable to get off a shot in time on their next possession as time expired.

            After shooting 44.8 percent (13-for-29) in the first half, the Huskies finished the game shooting 32.7 percent (17-for-52) after making just four second-half field goals.  The Gulls shot 32.8 percent (20-for-61) from the field and held a huge 49-36 edge on the boards, but the Huskies held a key advantage at the free throw line making 15-of-24 compared to 7-for-11 for Endicott.