Saturday was another close loss for Daylen Dalcour and the Rivier Raiders. (Courtesy photo by Nick Theodores/Rivier Athletics)

HENNIKER – The Rivier men’s basketball came up short against Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) opponents New England College, 70-67, Saturday afternoon at Bridges Gym.

With the loss, the Raiders dropped to 10-13 (3-7 GNAC), while the Pilgrims improved to 7-15 (2-9 GNAC).

HOW IT HAPPENED

New England Col. opened the contest on a 7-0 run before senior Robenson Baguidy knocked two free throws to get Rivier on the board.

First-year Daylen Dalcour caught fire just shy of the midway point, finishing two layups and slammed one home to bring the Raiders within four, 10-14.

Junior Theo Briscoe IV knocked down a triple during Rivier’s next possession to make it one point game.

Both teams traded chance however, the Pilgrims maintained their one-point lead until Dalcour converted from the free throw line to give Rivier its first lead of the contest, 25-23 at 5:52.

Following a 25-25 deadlock, New England Col. closed out the opening half on a 15-8 run, taking a 38-33 lead into the locker room.

Coming out of the break, the Dalcour and senior Izaiah Shaw-Glen combined for 13 points to help the Raiders regain the lead, 46-45.

Both teams played through several lead changes until Dimitri Sime knocked down a three for the Pilgrims to regain the lead, 61-58.

With 1:03 remaining, Dalcour finished the three-point play on an and-one to make it a one-point game once again.

New England Col. sealed the game, 70-67, from the free throw line and denied Rivier a last-ditch effort at a comeback.

BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN

Dalcour finished with a career-high 22 points, adding eight rebounds, six of them offensive…Baguidy added 19 points on 50% shooting along with six rebounds and seven assists…As a team, Rivier held a slight edge in steals, 9-4, points off turnovers 21-9, and fastbreak points, 8-0.

UP NEXT

The Raiders return to action Tuesday for a road GNAC matchup with Elms at 5 p.m. at Pickenlly Arena.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

NEC 53, RIVIER 42

The Rivier women’s basketball team fell late to Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) and intrastate opponents New England College at Bridges Gym.

With the loss, the Raiders dropped to 2-21 (2-8 GNAC), while the Pilgrims moved to 15-8 (6-5 GNAC).

Rivier opened the contest on a 6-0 run with sophomores Gianna Donato and Hannah Smith, and junior Erika Fantauzzi knocking down jumper to build the lead. An and-one for Donato pushed the Raiders ahead 12-3 with 4:38 to play in the first quarter.

New England Col. cut its deficit to seven points on the back of a 5-3 run to close out the first quarter, 15-8. Both teams kept it close in the opening five minutes of the second quarter, with the Pilgrims out scoring Rivier 7-6 to come within six points.

After nearly three minutes of scoreless play, each squad played to an even 4-4 run to end the first half, 25-19 Raiders. New England Col. found its stride in the third quarter, outscoring Rivier 18-6 in the frame.

Donato and Fantauzzi helped extend the Raiders’ lead to eight before Mackenzie McDonald knocked down a three to spark a 16-2 surge for the Pilgrims.

New England Col. took its first lead of the game, 30-29, with 2:57 to play in the third off a McDonald jumper. The Pilgrims scored nine more points over the final three minutes of the frame to take a 37-31 lead into the fourth.

Graduate student Juju Nealy cashed in from distance to cut the deficit to three before Fantauzzi made it a one-point game, 36-37, at 7:41.

New England Col. regained its momentum from the third quarter just shy of the midway point of the fourth quarter, closing out the contest on a 16-6 run to secure to the 53-42 win.

Donato led the Raiders with a 21-point, 10 rebound double-double. Nealy finished with 11 points and three rebounds, followed by Fantauzzi with eight points on 57.1% shooting.

The Raiders return to the court Tuesday for a 7 p.m. road GNAC contest versus Elms at Picknelly Arena.

WOMEN’S HOCKEY

RIVIER 2, FRAMINGHAM STATE 1

Rivier completed the weekend sweep in Massachusetts Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action at Loring Arena.

With the result, the Raiders moved to 15-8-0 (10-3-0 MASCAC), while the Rams moved to 2-17-1 (1-9 MASCAC).

After more than 17 minutes of scoreless hockey, the Rams found the back of the net to take a one-goal edge.

The Raiders answered late in the second, on a power-play opportunity, as first-year Marina Bassett fired home the tying tally at 16:35, set up by senior Olivia Schultz and classmate Chloe Bryda.

Basset stayed hot, tucking away her second power-play goal of the night 2:39 into the final frame, to give Rivier a 2-1 lead.Junior Taylor Bruno turned aside 12 shots to close out the game, sealing the victory.

The Raiders outshot the Rams 49-37; Bruno recorded 36 saves in the outing.

Rivier controlled faceoffs 35-25.

First-year Lexi Davies and Sophomore Keegan McGaheran each claimed 12 faceoff wins for the Raiders.

The Raiders head to Worcester Ice Center next Saturday for a MASCAC showdown with Worcester St. in the regular-season finale at 4:20 p.m.

MEN’S HOCKEY

WESTFIELD STATE 6, RIVIER 0

With the conference result at Amelia Park Arena, the Raiders moved to 2-20-1 (2-10-0 MASCAC), while the Owls moved to 15-7-1 (8-3 -1 MASCAC).

The Owls flew to an early 3-0 lead after the opening 20 minutes of play.

Westfield St. tallied two in the second, striking at 11:10 and again on the power play at 15:06, pushing their lead to 5-0.

With a chance to extend the lead at 11:28 of the third, first-year Matt Dore came up big, denying a penalty shot to keep the deficit at five.

Westfield St. eventually added one more, on a power play, with three minutes remaining, sealing the 6-0 final.

Junior Mason Meyer and Dore split time between the pipes, making a combined 29 saves. Westfield St. outshot Rivier 35-25.

The Raiders are back in action at Loring Arena for a MASCAC match-up with Framingham State on Thursday at 7:40 p.m.