Once again, Kristi Wildman is solidifying herself as one of the top small college defensive players in the state. And nobody works better with Wildman than backcourtmate Vicki Mazerall.

Together, the two junior guards spearheaded a hellacious full-court defensive effort for Husson College by combining for 23 points and 14 steals to lead the host Braves to a hard-fought, 71-65 women’s basketball victory over Colby College of Waterville at Newman Gym in Bangor on Wednesday night.

“I’ve got to give Kristi and Vicki a lot of credit,” said Husson Coach Kissy Walker moments after her team moved its record to 6-0 on the season. “I thought their defense really carried us.”

A 15-6 run early in the second half gave Colby a 49-46 lead with 10:33 left. Following a television timeout, Wildman (eight points, seven steals) and Mazerall (15 points, seven steals) went to work.

Wildman picked Colby point guard Adria Lowell’s pocket in the backcourt and hit Mazerall for a layup to make it 49-48.

After two free throws by Colby’s Kathie Pooler, Husson answered with Wildman, who hit a top-of-the-key two-pointer. The 5-foot-8 Wildman then recorded another steal and once again found Mazerall for a layup, giving Husson a 52-51 lead with eight minutes left.

The teams then swapped baskets until a Wildman foul shot gave Husson a 57-56 lead with 4:56 left.

Mazerall then kicked off a 10-0 run with back-to-back jumpers from 18 and 14 feet, respectively. Wildman, Darci Collins (10 points), and Stephanie Lebel (eight points, nine rebounds) then each hit two free throws apiece to push the lead to 67-56 with 2:46 left.

After Colby closed to 68-65 on a pair of offensive rebounds by Heather Belanger and Beth Montgomery, Mazerall swished a pair of free throws and Lebel added one more to close out the scoring.

“That’s the big thing with us. Kristi and I work well together,” said Mazerall. “We’re trying to read one another. If I know what she’s going to do, if she’s going to steal the ball, I’ll try to get open and vice versa.”

“Husson kept their pressure up and that wore us down,” said Carol Ann Beach, Colby’s first-year coach. “I give a lot of credit to them, but I think our team played very hard and I’m not disappointed in their effort.”

Sophomore forward Michelle Hamlin was Husson’s best inside player, scoring nine points and grabbing nine rebounds.

Early in the game, Colby’s 6-1 Montgomery (15 points, 10 rebounds, six blocks) and 6-0 Belanger (14 points, 11 rebounds) took advantage of a porous Husson half-court defense. They combined for 10 of Colby’s first 12 points as the Mules took a 12-8 lead.

Two Mazerall hoops, a driving layup by Wildman, and a 17-footer from Tracy Parker gave Husson a lead it would not relinquish until Colby went up 41-40 with 13:46 left.

Before long, though, Husson’s pressure defense became more of a factor.

With the Braves’ top two scorers, Anne Cote (3-for-11) and Lebel (0-for-12), struggling against the taller Colby frontcourt, freshmen Steph Shaw (four points, five rebounds) and Parker (2-for-2 from the floor) helped pick up the slack.

“When people are having an off night, somebody’s got to come off the bench to pick the other players up,” said Shaw, a tough 5-8 forward. “I think we’ve got a deep bench. The guards are the ones that keep us going. When we need a quick basket, they’ll come up with the steals.”

When Husson needed the baskets on Wednesday, it was the guards – namely Wildman and Mazerall – who kept the Braves going.

Braves 71, Mules 65

Husson women Colby

Name AG G AF F TP Name AG G AF F TP

Cote 11 3 4 3 9 Pooler 6 3 10 9 15

Wildman 7 2 7 4 8 Jewers 2 0 0 0 0

Collins 9 4 3 2 10 Lowell 8 1 2 2 5

Hamlin 8 3 5 3 9 Belanger 11 5 7 4 14

Lebel 12 0 10 8 8 Mntgomery 12 6 4 3 15

Mazerall 11 6 3 3 15 Huntress 2 2 3 1 6

Newman 1 0 0 0 0 Roberts 6 3 0 0 2

Shaw 8 2 0 0 4 Bowman 4 2 1 0 4

Grant 2 1 0 0 2

Parker 2 2 0 0 4

Lisherness 1 1 0 0 2

Totals 72 24 32 23 71 Totals 51 22 27 19 65

Husson women 32 71

Colby 27 65

3-pt. goals: Husson (0-for-3): Wildman 0-2, Mazerall 0-1; Colby (2-for-8): Huntress 1-1, Lowell 1-7.