COLCHESTER, Vt. - The Saint Michael's College women's basketball team used a late 9-0 run to overcome Northeast-10 Conference foe American International College, 65-60, in its regular-season finale on Tuesday at Ross Sports Center. The Purple Knights head to Franklin Pierce University on Friday for an NE10 Championship first-round game.
 
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (6-22, 2-20 NE10), AIC (14-14, 9-13 NE10)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• First-year Amber Furch (Los Angeles, Calif./Brentwood School), 14 points, 8 rebounds, 3 offensive rebounds, 5-for-8 field goals
• Junior Brianna Furch (Los Angeles, Calif./Brentwood School/Cal State Fullerton), 12 points, 4 steals, 3 assists, 2 blocks
• Senior Makayla Blake (Colonie, N.Y./Colonie Central), 11 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists
• Senior Paige Slaven (Fair Haven, N.J./Rumson-Fair Haven Regional), 9 points, 4 steals, 2 assists
• First-year Ruby Santos (New Paltz, N.Y./Kent School), 4 points, 6 rebounds

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Senior Briana Lee, 18 points, 16 rebounds, 6 offensive rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 8-for-12 field goals
• Graduate student Kayla Robinson, 17 points
• Junior Rhaymi Porter, 7 rebounds

GAME FACTS

• The Purple Knights held key advantages in made free throws (19-7) and bench scoring (27-13).
• Saint Michael's downed AIC on its home floor for the first time since Jan. 26, 2010.

THE ACTION

• AIC scored 17 of the game's first 23 points on its way to leading 23-11 at 7:42 of the second quarter for the largest lead by either team.
• Saint Michael's tied the game before the half concluded, using a 12-2 run during which Amber Furch scored seven points, sister Brianna knocked down a three-pointer, and first-year Ashlee Talbot (Dracut, Mass./Dracut) turned in the tying bucket, a mid-range jumper with 43 seconds to go.
• Lee's free throw at 25 seconds provided the visitors a 28-27 cushion at halftime, but Slaven buried a go-ahead three 1:15 into the third quarter before Blake's pair of freebies made it 32-28 by 7:30.
• An 11-2 run later gave Saint Michael's a 43-36 lead on Santos' free throws at 3:28.
• The Purple Knights remained in front until Robinson's three-point play with 5:18 left in the fourth pushed AIC into a 53-51 lead, and first-year Ruzgar Christina Boyle's triple 41 seconds later created a 56-53 contest.
• Four different players scored as Saint Michael's responded with a 9-0 run, forging a tie on Blake's free throw at 3:20 and going ahead to stay when Brianna Furch scored on the fast break at 2:44 after blocking a shot at the other end.
• AIC cut the six-point deficit to as few as three on Lee's lay-up with 13 seconds left, but junior Molly Brophy (Greenwich, N.Y./Greenwich Central School) buried a clinching free throw one tick later.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME

• Friday at Franklin Pierce University, 5:30 p.m.
• The 12th-seeded Purple Knights visit No. 5 Franklin Pierce for an NE10 Championship first-round game.