JOHNSON, Vt. — The Northern Vermont University-Johnson women's basketball team completed the season sweep of North Atlantic Conference rival SUNY Canton on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Kangaroos 68-61 at Carter Gymnasium. 

Junior Ellery Kiefer poured in 17 points off 6-9 shooting and collected seven rebounds in the win. Halie Tillotson scored 16 points for the Badgers going 7-15 from the field. Amorette Rodriguez and Lindsey LaPerle each added eight points. 

Tied at six points halfway through the first quarter, the Kangaroos went on an 8-1 run to extend their lead to seven points. Back-to-back field goals by Christle Page cut the Kangaroos run but SUNY Canton held a 15-12 advantage over the Badgers entering the second quarter. 

The Badgers came out firing in the second quarter as Lindsey LaPerle and Amorette Rodriguez each knocked down 3-pointers to retake the lead. The teams traded baskets throughout the second period but the Badgers maintained their lead.

Freshman Halie Tillotson gave the Badgers an offensive spark in the third quarter, collecting nine of her points on 4-6 shooting from the field in the period. Tillotson knocked down a shot from behind the arc in the final seconds to tie the game 47-47 entering the final stanza.

Down 50-49, the Badgers went on a 9-1 run to take a seven point advantage and force the Kangaroos to call a timeout with six minutes remaining. Despite a run by the Kangaroos in the final minutes of play, the Badgers maintained their composure and went 6-8 from the line to seal their second win of the season over SUNY Canton.

The Badgers shot 40.3% from the field in the win compared to the Kangaroos 32.8% shooting. The Kangaroos edged the Badgers in the rebounding battle, securing 39 boards to the Badgers' 33. 

The Northern Vermont University-Johnson women's basketball team improves to 2-17 on the season and 2-7 in NAC play with Saturday's win. The Badgers will host Maine Maritime on Friday, February 7th for a North Atlantic Conference matchup at 5:30pm.