GORHAM, Maine –  Junior Franny Ramsdell (Wells, Maine) scored a career-high 26 points to lead three players in double figures as the University of Southern Maine Huskies defeated the Western Connecticut State University Wolves 71-54 in a Little East Conference women's basketball game Saturday afternoon at Hill Gymnasium.
 
With the win Southern Maine secures its spot in the upcoming Little East Conference tournament and earns the fifth seed.  It is the second consecutive LEC win for the Huskies. 
 
Ramsdell was 9-for-13 from the field and 7-for-8 from the free throw line for the career-high mark.  Junior Amy Fleming (Berwick, Maine/Noble) filled the stat sheet with 11 points, six rebounds, five assists, five steals and two blocked shots.  Junior Tamrah Gould (Manchester, N.H./Manchester West) rounded out the double-digit scoring with 10 points, three rebounds and two assists.  All eight Huskies who entered the game scored at least four points in the contest. 
 
Rosaleen Regan led WestConn with 10 points.  Katelyn Fanning added nine points, while Alyssa Virtue and Maggie Nardini each had seven points.  Ashley Rilley had a game-high 13 rebounds, adding six points, three assists and four steals for the Wolves. 
 
 
The Records:
Western Connecticut (12-12, 5-11 Little East)
Southern Maine (8-17, 6-10 Little East)
 
Series History:
Meeting for the 68^th time in series history, Southern Maine leads the overall series 49-19. Western Connecticut earned a 48-39 win on January 14 earlier this season. USM is 8-3 in the last 11 meetings with the Wolves.
 
How It Happened:

• WestConn scored the first four points of the opening quarter and did not trail in the first.  Regan hit a pair of free throws at 1:54 to give the Wolves their largest lead, 13-8, before USM closed the quarter on a 4-1 run, to enter the second down a bucket 14-12.  Fleming and Gould scored the final four for USM.
• WestConn regained its five point advantage early in the second on buckets from Nicole Vivian and Julia Misner, before USM made it a one point game, 20-19, with a 6-2 run on layups from Gould and Ramsdell and two free throws from junior Ashley Aceto. 
• The game remained a one-possession affair until Maggie Nardini hit a three at 3:51 to give the Wolves a 29-25 advantage.  However, the Huskies answered back with a three from Fleming, starting a 12-6 run to end the half and take a 37-35 lead into the break.  Ramsdell scored seven of her points in the pivotal run.
• Both teams went back and forth to start the third.  A free throw from WestConn's Katelyn Fanning gave the Wolves a narrow 41-40 lead at the 6:34 mark before USM's Fleming converted two of her own to start an 11-0 run.  Husky freshman Vanessa Vaughan (Hantsport, Nova Scotia/King's Edge Academy) scored five of her six points in the run as USM led 51-41 with 3:12.  Rilley pulled WestConn within seven, 53-46, with two free throws with seconds remaining, before the Huskies' Emma Haskell (Hampden, Maine/Hampden Academy) scored before the clock expired for a 55-46 USM lead headed to the fourth.
• The Huskies remained comfortably ahead in the fourth and led 66-50 with 3:20 to play after a five point swing from Ramsdell on a three and a jumper.  From there USM led by as many as 19 late and took the 71-54 final.

 
Inside The Stats:

•  Southern Maine shot 46.8 percent (22-for-47) from the field in the win, including a 64.3 percent effort (9-for-14) in the second quarter. 
• Both teams shot well from the free throw line. Western shot 78.6 percent (11-for-14), but USM had a large advantage from the line converting 24-of-30 (80.0 percent).

 
Up Next:
Southern Maine earns the fifth seed in the upcoming Little East Conference tournament. The Little East Conference tournament begins with quarterfinal games on Tuesday, February 21. The Huskies will travel to Castleton University (6:00 pm).  Castleton is the fourth seed.