FINAL SCORE: Quinnipiac 77, Vermont 65
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Sydney Smith posted a career-high 30 points in her second double-double of the season as Vermont fell to the Quinnipiac Bobcats 77-65 in day two of the TD Bank Classic in Patrick Gym on Saturday night.
 
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"We got off track in the second quarter but otherwise, did enough good things to win so I'm just disappointed for the kids," noted head coach Lori Gear McBride. "The game was in single-digits before we got into a fouling situation and never fully recovered. We can't afford those types of lapses and need to give Quinnipiac credit for countering on our fast start and holding on."
 
In Smith's double-double effort she tallied 30 points, sinking a career-high seven 3-pointers, and grabbed 11 rebounds. Smith's 30 points were the most by a Vermont player since assistant coach Courtnay Pilypaitis scored 36 during the 2009 season. Hayley Robertson dished out eight assists, recorded 13 points and three steals in her fourth start as a Catamount. UVM shot a season-high 52-percent from 3-point range (10-for-19) and held the Bobcats to 37-percent from the field.
 
Maria Napolitino paced the Bobcat's offense with 20 points and three assists and Brittany Johnson chipped in 10 points and three rebounds.
 
Smith shot the lights out of Patrick Gym as she drilled five consecutive buckets from downtown during the Catamounts 16-3 run in the first quarter. Vermont took an early 21-14 lead with 2:02 left in the period as UVM sustained a seven-point cushion after 10 minutes of action.
 
The second quarter momentum shifted in favor of Quinnipiac as it went on a 19-4 run fueled by five different Bobcats. Quinnipiac tied the game at 28 apiece with 2:54 left to play in the half. The Bobcats posted eight unanswered points in the final two minutes, closing out the half with the 36-28 advantage. 
 
After a break in action, Vermont cut the Bobcats' lead to five (49-44) on a clean jumper from Andreana Thomas at the 4:15 mark in the third. Quinnipiac went into the final quarter up 52-48.
 
Back-to-back three-point buckets from Quinnipiac gave the Bobcats a six-point advantage with 6:24 remaining in the game. Thomas halted an 8-0 Bobcat-run by drawing a foul and connecting on one from the stripe, but it was not enough as Quinnipiac maintained their fourth-quarter lead for a 12-point victory.

TD Bank All-Tournament Team
Sydney Smith - Vermont
Maria Napolitino - Quinnipiac
Leah Fechko - St. Francis Brooklyn
Dorothy Adomako - Georgetown
Diona White - Georgetown (MVP)
Faith Woodward - Georgetown

Vermont hits the road again, this time to Worchester, Massachusetts to take on the Holy Cross Crusaders on Wednesday (Dec. 2) at 7 p.m. Radio coverage begins 20 minutes prior to tip-off at 6:40 p.m. on WVMT 620-AM and SportsJuice.com and will have live stream via Campus Insiders.