Nick Nets Career High in Vassar Win Over Williams

POUGHKEEPSIE – The Brewers led by two heading into halftime, but used a strong second half quarter to pull away from the Ephs for the 81-71 victory on Thursday evening. Junior Sophie Nick scored a career-high 31 points while tacking on 12 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season.

With the win, Vassar moves to 5-2 overall, while Williams slips to 3-4.

Vassar struggled to connect in the first quarter, allowing a 10-0 Williams run until Ryan DeOrio knocked down a three at 5:18 to cut the Ephs’ lead to 12-7. After Lauren Vostal answered with a three of her own, Williams looked to go on another run and eventually led by 10 after a Katie Brule layup. Nick responded, and then a pair of free throws from Jackie Cenan put the score 19-13. Williams scored two more times and led 23-15 heading into the second quarter.

Defense took hold for the Brewers, allowing only nine Ephs’ points until halftime. Maggie Meehan opened with a three nine seconds in to give Williams their largest lead of the night at 11. DeOrio connected for a layup at 9:36, and Dani Douglas then tallied a quick mid-range jumper to lessen the lead to 26-19.

Vassar slowly chipped away at the deficit, going on an 11-2 run to tie the game 26-26 at 6:39. Attempting to break the streak, Gabby Martin made a quick layup to put Williams up two. In one of the highlight possessions of the night, Maddie Leong picked off Lexi Jones.

The ball reached DeOrio, who made the athletic move to split through a pair of Ephs’ defenders and slip in the finger-roll layup. After the teams traded baskets for a few minutes, Nick scored the final four points to give Vassar a 34-32 lead at the break.

The Brewers began their push in the third, outscoring Williams 21-16. DeOrio opened the half with a quick layup nine seconds in. Williams hung around, with the game being within three points until Douglas hit a trey at 1:27 to give Vassar a 51-46 advantage. In the final seconds, Cenan beat the clock and the game was 55-48 in Vassar’s favor.

An Isa Peczuh three-pointer began a 9-4 run, and the Brewers led by as much as 19 in the final stanza. As a team, Vassar shot 55.9 with a 66.7 percentage from three-point range in the second half. Williams could not find an answer to a rolling Brewers offense, and Vassar took the eventual 81-71 final victory.

Nick shot 15-for-22 and also had three steals and two blocks. Cenan was second on the team with 15 points and posted a career-high six assists. DeOrio also tallied a career-high six assists, while adding 12 points. Leong had a strong day on the boards, grabbing her career-best seven rebounds.

Vassar hits the road for a month and travels to Skidmore on Wed. Dec. 12 at 5 p.m.