NORTHFIELD, Vt. - Nikki Bitinaitis (Cromwell, Conn.) connected on a late three pointer to lift the Regis (Mass.) women's basketball team to a 58-54 win at Norwich on Thursday night, preserving its perfect league record to remain atop the Great Northeast Athletic Conference standings.

Sam D'Angelo (Woburn, Mass.) went to the free throw line with just under a minute to play, hitting the first but earning a jump ball after missing her second. With Regis (6-6, 4-0 GNAC) retaining possession, Melissa Rogers (Billerica, Mass.) drove to the basket and kicked the ball out to Bitinaitis who nailed her corner three to put the Pride up by five points with 32 seconds to play.

The Cadets played the free throw game the rest of way but Regis came out on top. Brittany Stone delivered another solid performance with team-highs in points (16) and rebounds (14). D'Angelo had 15 points and seven rebounds with Bitinaitis adding 10 points.

The Cadets (4-7, 1-3 GNAC) were caught on their heels coming out of the gate, and let Regis jump out to a quick 8-0 lead right off the bat. Norwich didn't fold that easily, answering back with their own 6-0 run to bring things close again. Things were just about as even as they could be for the rest of the first half, as both teams swapped buckets through both quarters on their way to a 28-27 Regis advantage at halftime.

Both teams came out firing in the second half, swapping the lead multiple times before a Shyann Josler (Thetford Center, Vt.) buzzer-beating 3-pointer sent the game into the fourth quarter at a dead even 40-40 tie. Bitinaitis' clutch three-pointer gave Regis a 57-52 lead, and the Cadets failed to close the gap before time expired.

Josler had her most impressive offensive game of the season, leading all scorers by a long shot with 24 points on the day along with 5 assists, a steal, and 4 rebounds. Arianna Harrison (Vernon, Vt.) was the only other Cadet to reach double digits scoring with 12 points and 6 rebounds on the night.

The loss drops Norwich down to 4-7 overall this year and a 1-3 mark within the GNAC. The Pride return home to take on Suffolk this Saturday, Jan. 13 at 3:00 p.m.

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Recap courtesy of Norwich sports information