FITCHBURG, Mass. -- Senior center Kelsey Simonds (Middleboro) buried all four of her three-point attempts and finished with a game-high 26 points, along with 15 rebounds and four blocks, as Stonehill College pulled away over the final six minutes for a 74-56 win over Bentley University in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II East Regional Friday afternoon at the Fitchburg State College Recreation Center.

Stonehill, the third seed, improved to 24-9 and will take on number two Holy Family in Saturday's semis. Bentley, seeded sixth in the regional, saw its season end at 19-11, only the second time in the last 27 years that the Falcons haven't reached the 20-win mark.

Bentley, which had trailed by as many as 14 early before coming alive, took its final lead of the afternoon with 18:18 left in the game when sophomore guard Meghan Thomann (Andover/Andover HS) buried a three-ball to make it 33-31.

The Skyhawks, who had been dominated on the boards in the first half, replied by scoring the game's next nine points, four coming on put-backs by senior forward Erin Gray (Clifton Park, N.Y.) and Simonds. The run also included one of the team's ten three-pointers, this three-ball launched by Gray.

After Bentley battled back to within three points at 45-42, Simonds scored seven unanswered points in a variety of ways. The six-foot-three All-Conference honoree hit a short jumper, scored on a put-back and buried a three-pointer to make it a 10-point game, 52-42, with 8:56 to play.

Three minutes later, with the score at 52-45, the Skyhawks put the game away by scoring 11 in a row with five different players contributing points.  Included was another triple from Simonds.

At the start, Stonehill rarely missed and Bentley was unable to get untracked, with a 3-for-12 shooting effort and five turnovers resulting in a 20-6 deficit a little more than seven minutes into the contest. While the Falcons were struggling, the Skyhawks were seven of ten overall and had five different players connect from beyond the arc.

Bentley, led by junior guard Kim Brennan (Locust Valley, N.Y./Locust Valley HS) and senior post Colette Josey (Boston/Framingham HS), battled back and eventually took a 25-24 lead before going into the locker room at the break down two, 29-27. A dominance inside (14-2 in points in the paint) and on the boards (26-12) fueled the comeback.

Brennan, who moved into 13th on Bentley's all-time scoring list (finishing the season with 1,319 points) scored nine of her team-high 16 points in the first half, and Josey had nine points and seven rebounds at the break. Those proved to be her final numbers as well as she picked up two quick fouls in the first minute of the second half, and regained her first-half form after that.

"I liked our comeback and the way we battled back in the first half," said Bentley coach Barbara Stevens. "But then the fouls started accumulating and that derailed our momentum."

Bentley was whistled for five fouls in the first three minutes of the second half, which put both Josey and back-up senior post Dedra Pritchard (Lake Hopatcong, N.J./Jefferson Township HS) on the bench, with three and four fouls, respectively.

Simonds, who had 19 points and 11 rebounds in the second half alone, finished 11 of 17 from the field, and also amassed three assists and two steals.

"She completely dominates the game," said Stevens of the Stonehll center. "Even if she's not scoring, the offense revolves around her because she draws so much attention."

Gray, who was also perfect from outside the three-point line (3-3), followed with 13 points and six assists, and junior guard Emily Rousseau (Biddeford, Maine) provided 11 points, including a 6-6 effort at the foul line.

Junior forward Elise Caira (Wakefield/Arlington Catholic HS) had a double-double for Bentley, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Thomann and sophomore guard Katherine Goodwin (Goffstown, N.H./Governors Academy) matched Josey with nine points.

Stonehill, powered by its 10-of-14 performance from three-point territory, outshot the Falcons, 43-35 percent and took better care of the basketball with only 11 giveaways, as compared to Bentley's 18. The Skyhawks also evened up the rebounds in the second half, outboarding the Falcons by 13 at the break after being dominated over the first 20 minutes.

It marked the third straight year that Bentley has exited the NCAAs in the opening round and the final game in a Bentley uniform for Josey, Pritchard, senior forward Kelly Barrett (Middle Village, N.Y./ Christ the King HS) and senior guard Meagan Lambros (Bayville, N.J./Central Regional HS).