RINDGE, N.H. (2/7/23) – A good looking second half following a rather listless first half was not enough to help the Franklin Peirce women's basketball team on Tuesday evening, as they fell to in-state rival Southern New Hampshire, 71-63 in Northeast-10 Conference action at The Fieldhouse.

With the loss, the Ravens fall to 7-16 (3-13 NE10) on the season while the Penmen improve to 16-5 (12-4 NE10) overall with the win.

On the Ravens first two possessions of the game, freshman Leana Heitmann (Pompey, N.Y.) and junior Ines Gimenez Monserrat (Mallorca, Spain) each drilled home three-point baskets to bring the action to a 6-6 tie. However, Southern New Hampshire eventually gained the upper hand during the remainder of the first quarter, finishing out the opening ten minutes on an 11-1 run to carry a 19-11 edge into the second.

The Penmen took advantage of a sluggish Raven offense in the second quarter, outscoring Pierce 19-4. Ines Gimenez Monserrat secured the only field goal of the frame at the 8:20 mark, but no other floor production would follow up until halftime, with Pierce trailing 38-15. As a team in the second, Pierce shot 1-of-11 (9.1%) from the floor, committing six turnovers.

The third quarter went significantly more as planned for the Ravens, as the Pierce offense caught fire right out of the break with an early 8-0 run. After a brief pushback by the visitors, junior Ana Badosa Soler (Girona, Spain) scored a pair of layups on consecutive possessions, additionally drawing the and-one on the second for five points scored. Later on down the stretch, Badosa Soler would also cash in from behind the arc, pulling the score to 47-36 on a three-pointer with 1:46 left in the period. In the final minute of the third, the Raven defense kept Southern New Hampshire off the scoreboard, while Leana Heitmann returned with another pair of layups to give Pierce a chance entering the final frame, trailing 49-40.  

After the Penmen opened the fourth with a three-pointer 30-seconds in, junior Gabriela Sanchez-Parodi (Canary Islands, Spain) responded with her own basket from downtown. However, as Pierce attempted to fight for survival, Southern New Hampshire looked to clinch the victory with a 13-5 run that spanned 4:48. The visitors would do just that, as the clock would expire with the 71-63 final score.

Freshman Leana Heitmann led Pierce in scoring with a season-best 19-points in 37 minutes of action, while junior Ines Gimenez Monserrat contributed 18 points after going 7-of-18 from the floor. Despite the loss, the evening yielded a career-first double-double performance from junior Ana Badosa Soler, who matched her 10 points with 10 rebounds in the effort. As a team, Pierce shot 22-of-61 (36.1%) from the field and 9-of-22 from three-range.

Women's Basketball stays home for their upcoming matchup against another in-state rival on Saturday, February 11^th when they will welcome Saint Anselm College to The Fieldhouse for a 1:30 p.m. tipoff.