COLCHESTER, Vt. - Sophomore Indira Evora (Somerville, Mass./Somerville) hit a tie-breaking free throw with 13.0 seconds remaining, and the Saint Michael's College women's basketball team forced two missed shots in the waning seconds to hold on for a 74-73 victory over Southern Connecticut State University on Saturday in the Ross Sports Center. The Purple Knights, who played their last five games on the road, improved to 8-7 overall and 3-7 in the Northeast-10 Conference, while the Owls, who entered the day tied for second in the NE-10 Southwest Division, are 10-8 and 7-3.

Junior Makenzie Burud (Red Hook, N.Y./Coleman Catholic) put forth 18 points on 8-of-13 shooting, 11 rebounds and four assists for Saint Michael's, which has already doubled its 2013-14 win total. Senior Maggie Sabine (Litchfield, Maine/Oak Hill/Central Maine CC) tallied 16 points and four rebounds, including four offensive, while going 6-of-7 on free throws. First-year Tomi Akinpetide (Sydney, Australia/Rice Memorial Prep) neared a double-double with personal bests of 13 points, nine rebounds and four steals, as she shot 4-of-6 from the floor and 5-of-6 on freebies.

Senior Kelly Frappier (Colchester, Conn./Bacon Academy) turned in 10 points in 17 minutes for the hosts, junior Megan Gaudreau (Brooklyn, Conn./Pomfret School) canned the 100th and 101st three-pointers of her career to tie Sue Cahill '90 for ninth in program history and finish with eight points, and Evora shot 4-of-6 at the charity stripe en route to seven points and five steals. Saint Michael's is 6-3 in its last nine games with the Owls, with seven decided by single digits. The Purple Knights parlayed a narrow 19-14 edge in offensive rebounds into a 24-8 advantage in second-chance scoring.

Senior Mariah Hankton (Upper Marlboro, Md./Saint Vincent Pallotti) shot 8-of-14 for 19 points for the Owls, winners of their prior three contests. Sophomore Taylor McLaughlin (Colchester, Conn./Bacon Academy) collected 12 points and seven boards off the bench, and junior Jackie Beathea (Annandale, Va./Annandale) totaled 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Classmate Danielle Powell (Middletown, N.Y./Pine Bush) finished with eight points, six rebounds and three blocks.

Burud's free throw with 50 seconds remaining put her team ahead 72-66 before Southern Connecticut State rallied, with Hankton's fast-break bucket being followed by a Purple Knight turnover and two Owl free throws. After Evora hit another freebie at 31.5 seconds to make it 73-70, first-year Chandler Williams (Chepachet, R.I./Ponaganset) hit a step-back three from the left wing with 20.5 ticks left to knot the score. On the next trip down the floor, Evora was fouled as she drove and made her second free throw to put the Purple Knights on top. The visitors had an opportunity to win the game in the final 10 seconds, as a three-pointer from the right corner was off the mark, and an offensive rebound led to a shot from the left block that was offline just before the buzzer as Sabine applied pressure.

Frappier scored six points during an 8-0 run that gave her team an early 8-2 lead, and the Purple Knights continued to lead by as many as six points until Hankton converted a three-point play with 4:05 remaining in the half to draw the Owls within 26-25. Saint Michael's responded with the next nine points during a 1:16 stretch, with Akinpetide turning in five, and the Purple and Gold held the game's largest lead, 35-25, on Sabine's hoop at 2:31. Powell provided two baskets during a 6-0 counter by the visitors, but Burud's lay-up at the buzzer sent the hosts into the locker room with a 40-33 advantage.

Eight of the game's nine lead changes occurred in the second half, including four between the 16:52 and 15:58 marks, with Saint Michael's going back in front on Burud's lay-in to begin a 9-0 run. Evora buried a three 31 seconds later, and Burud and Frappier dropped home the next two buckets. Sophomore Kari Lavalette's (Williston, Vt./Essex) close-range jumper at 10:04 kept the hosts ahead by four before Hankton capped a 5-0 run with a hoop that put the visitors ahead 56-55 with 8:21 go, marking the first of four lead changes in a 1:06 span. Burud's lay-up gave Saint Michael's a 59-58 edge, which eventually extended to 69-61 on Akinpetide's jumper with 3:45 remaining before the visitors rallied.

The Purple Knights host The College of Saint Rose on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.