Senior captain Cerie Mosgrove’s nickname, the “Sniper,” will be put to the test Thursday evening when she competes at the 23rd annual State Farm College Slam Dunk & 3-point championship in Houston, Texas.

While the Massachusetts women’s basketball team failed to make the NCAA tournament, Mosgrove will take her talents to the Final Four, participating in the women’s 3-point shooting contest

Mosgrove led the country with a 49.7 percent from beyond the arc, shooting 78-for-157 in 2011.  These numbers built on her junior campaign, in which she hit just under 30 percent of her 3-point attempts and started 12-of-30 games. Under UMass coach Sharon Dawley, Mosgrove started all 30 games this season.

“Obviously I’ve worked on other aspects of my game, but the 3 has always been my strength,” said Mosgrove in a UMassathletics.com interview.

Mosgrove etched her name in the UMass history books as well, setting records for 3-pointers made and 3-point percentage in a single season. She also ranks third all-time in 3-pointers made with 171 and career 3-point percentage with 39 percent. This season, Mosgrove also finished second on her team in scoring and rebounding.

“It’s definitely a feeling of pride, I’m really excited for the program and I think it gets that much more exposure and looks good,” said Mosgrove.

The contest is set to take place on Thursday at Hofheinz Pavilion in Houston, Texas. Mosgrove is one of eight women competing in the contest, which will air on ESPN2 starting at 9 p.m.

Michael Counos can be reached at [email protected].