WILLIMANTIC, Conn. -- The Bridgewater State University women's basketball team opened the 2015-2016 season with a 60-56 victory over Regis College in the opening round of the 36th Annual Eastern Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday afternoon at Geissler Gymnasium.

The Bears move into the championship game and will take on host Eastern Connecticut State University on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 PM. Eastern cruised to an 86-48 win over Nichols College in the other semifinal.

In a game which featured seven ties and and 15 lead changes, BSU sophomore guard Jennifer Whyte (Braintree, Mass.) hit a key three-point field goal with just over a minute left that pushed Bridgeater ahead for good, 56-54. Following a missed a three-pointer on the ensuing possession, senior guard Vanesa Conceicao (New Bedford, Mass.) nailed a pair of free throws to make it 58-54 with 38 seconds left.

After Regis junior forward Amanda Hawkesworth (Abington, Mass.) dropped in a layup with 3:26 left that gave the Pride a 53-52 lead, Regis did not score from the floor over the final 3:26. The Pride could not connect on either of their final (three-point) shots after Whyte's go-ahead three-pointer with 1:13 left.

Regis's astounding 66-26 advantage in rebounding was offset by 27 turnovers which translated into 24 points for Bridgewater.

Junior forward Chanelle Melton (Brockton, Mass.) led Bridgewater with 16 points (8-for-17 from the floor), Whyte adding 15 points, and junior guard Chelsea Saucier (Portland, Maine) chipping in 11 points. Conceicao but finished with nine points, seven assists and three blocked shots in 33 minutes off the bench.

Hawkesworth of Regis led all players with 21 points and also collected nine rebounds, three assists and three steals. Sophomore forward Brittany Stone (West Bridgewater, Mass.) had a game-high 14 rebounds to go along with eight points and freshman guard Miah Andrews (Milton, Mass.) grabbed nine rebounds (with five points) in 15 minutes off the bench. Eight of Andrews' nine rebounds came in the second half.