Honoring the achievements of female athletes was the theme of the evening. First came the “Girl’s Night Out” presentation. Then came a fifth consecutive Binghamton University win over Vermont.

A late University of Vermont rally came up short as the Binghamton (7-14, 5-3 America East) women’s basketball team hung on for a 73-69 America East Conference win at the Events Center Tuesday night.

“Everyone hit free throws and we got the defensive stops we needed,” said Bearcat senior Laine Kurpniece.

The game featured a second-half thriller that had the crowd standing in the final minutes.

Vermont sophomore May Kotsopoulos forced a turnover and hit a key layup with 1:06 to play in regulation to lower the Binghamton lead to 71-67. The following possession resulted in another Bearcats turnover that led to a second consecutive Kotsopoulos layup.

Kurpniece was sent to the free-throw line where she converted one of her two attempts giving the Bearcats a 72-69 lead. A wide-open Kotsopoulos had a 3-pointer rim out and Binghamton sophomore Erica Carter pulled down the rebound and sank a free throw to secure Binghamton’s victory.

Binghamton secured its fifth straight win against Vermont (14-7, 5-3) after blowing a 17-point lead in the second half. The Bearcats had led 41-31 under five minutes into the second half after a 14-2 run.

Binghamton’s last loss to the Catamounts was an 80-65 decision in the 2005 AE quarterfinals.

Senior Laura Sario was given the tough assignment of guarding the explosive Catamount Courtnay Pilypaitis, who dropped 40 points in an 83-73 loss to Boston University Saturday. Sario held Pilypaitis to 17 points and only 4-for-14 shooting.

“We were able to build the lead with defense,” said Bearcat head coach Rich Conover. “Sario was huge for us in shutting [Pilypaitis] down.”

Kurpniece dominated the second half and had a game-high 18 points. Carter added 16 points for her fourth straight game in double figures.

Sario also added 10 points. Junior teammate Laura Franceski grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds.

Kotsopoulos finished with 17 points and six rebounds for the Catamounts.

Despite the road woes the Bearcats have felt all season long — Binghamton is 1-10 on the road — the Events Center has been the source of some much-needed wins.

“The fans are a huge factor,” Conover said. “We feed off the crowd’s energy and it builds confidence.”

Kurpniece said the win may spur the Bearcats to some success away from home.

“It brings back confidence on the road, especially for our next game,” she said.

Binghamton travels to Boston University for a pivotal conference matchup at 7 p.m Wednesday.