Rebounding, Late Free Throws Help Golden Bears Secure Key 51-46 Win over Roger Williams

Western New England outrebounds Roger Williams 47-26

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (February 14, 2017) – The Western New England University women's basketball team used a 47-26 rebounding advantage, including 20-3 on the offensive glass, and clutch free throw shooting down the stretch to secure a 51-46 victory over Roger Williams University this evening in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.

Top Performers
• Senior forward Emily Anderson (Rocky Hill, Conn.) led the Golden Bears with a team-high 14 points, seven of which came at the free throw line late in the fourth quarter. Anderson, who also grabbed seven rebounds, is now just 12 points shy of 1000 for her Western New England career.
• Senior forward Paige Young (Berlin, Conn.) turned in a strong all-around performance with eight points, eight boards, five steals and one assist.
• Junior guard Dorothy O'Neill (Staten Island, N.Y.) drained a trio of three-pointers on her way to a 13-point performance.

• Roger Williams junior forward Mariah Nicholas (Acushnet, Mass.) shot 8-of-14 from the field and finished with a game-high 17 points to go with eight rebounds and two assists.  
• Freshman guard Sam Leone (Ashland, Mass.) added 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.

Game Review
• Western New England, which started off shooting 2-of-8 from the field, took its first lead of the game (7-5) at the 4:39 mark of the first quarter on a three-pointer by O'Neill. The junior added another trey later in the period as the Golden Bears opened up a 14-9 advantage through ten minutes of play.
• Junior Rebecca Ritchie (Hanover, Mass.) connected from beyond the arc with 6:04 remaining in the second quarter, snapping a scoreless drought of 6:35 for Roger Williams as the Hawks pulled to within four (16-12). The Golden Bears would go on to hold a 22-17 lead at halftime with the help of 11 offensive rebounds that resulted in 11 second chance points.
• Roger Williams opened the second half with a 6-0 run, regaining the lead (23-22) on a layup by senior Bridget Quilty (Duxbury, Mass.) 2:32 into the third quarter.
• Young answered with four straight points for the Golden Bears, including a layup midway through the period that gave Western New England a 26-23 edge.
• Three-pointers by O'Neill with 1:40 remaining and sophomore Caroline Niland (Waltham, Mass.) in the closing seconds of the frame stretched Western New England's lead to seven (33-26) heading into the fourth quarter.
• The Golden Bears extended their lead into double figures (38-26) with a 5-0 run to start the fourth. Roger Williams battled back with an 11-2 run, however, fueled by six points from Nicholas and five from Leone, to cut its deficit to three (40-37) with 3:05 remaining.
• Western New England sealed the contest at the free throw line, sinking 11-of-14 attempts over the final 2:07 to hold off Roger Williams' late rally.

Notes
• Western New England came out on top despite shooting just 26.3% (15-of-57) from the field, its lowest clip of the season.
• The Golden Bears made 17-of-24 (70.8%) free throw attempts, while Roger Williams went just 1-of-3 from the charity stripe.
• With tonight's win, Western New England can finish no lower than third in the CCC standings, and the Golden Bears can still claim the No. 2 seed in the upcoming CCC Tournament with a Roger Williams loss on Saturday.

Up Next
Western New England (17-7, 13-4 CCC) travels to Endicott on Saturday for its regular season finale, while Roger Williams (17-7, 14-3 CCC) returns home to host Wentworth.