Golden Bears Bounce Back with 53-47 Victory over MCLA in Home Opener

Western New England seals win with 10-0 run late in fourth quarter

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (November 18, 2017) – The Western New England University women's basketball team overcame a nine-point halftime deficit to defeat the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA), 53-47, on Saturday afternoon in the Golden Bears' home opener at the Alumni Healthful Living Center. 

Western New England, which faced a 27-18 deficit at the break, outscored the Trailblazers 23-11 in the third quarter and 35-20 in the second half. Trailing 46-43 midway through the fourth quarter, the Golden Bears sealed their first win of the season with a 10-0 run.

Top Performers
• Sophomore forward Meghan Orbann (East Hampton, Conn.) led the Golden Bears with a game-high 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field and 3-of-5 from the free throw line to go with six rebounds and one assist.
• Senior guard Dorothy O'Neill (Staten Island, N.Y.) recorded ten points, five assists and three rebounds, while sophomore forward Courtney Carlson (Woodbury, Conn.) finished with seven points and a game-high 12 boards.

• MCLA senior forward Emily Moulton (North Adams, Mass.) posted a double-double with 13 points, ten rebounds, two steals, two assists and two blocks.
• Junior guard Samantha Gawron (South Hadley, Mass.) also scored in double figures with 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting to go with three rebounds. 

Game Review
• Western New England shot just 14.3 percent (2-of-14) from the field in the first quarter and trailed 12-6 after ten minutes of play.
• MCLA led by as much as 11 (21-10) after a layup by Gawron midway through the second quarter, and the visitors scored the final two baskets of the half to take a nine-point advantage into the locker room.
• The Golden Bears opened the second half with an 8-0 run, forcing an MCLA timeout. Western New England took its first lead of the afternoon (32-31) on a layup by Orbann with 4:01 remaining in the third quarter, and O'Neill completed a traditional three-point play at the 3:38 mark before Orbann capped the Golden Bears' 9-0 run with a pair of free throws 14 seconds later. Western New England shot 58.3 percent (7-of-12) from the field and 80 percent (8-of-10) from the free throw line in the third quarter and held a 41-38 edge heading into the fourth.
• MCLA tied the score at 43-43 on a Gawron layup 3:10 into the fourth quarter, before regaining the lead when junior Mckenzie Robinson (Adams, Mass.) connected from long range at the 4:44 mark.
• Western New England pulled back ahead for good (47-46) on a layup by Orbann with just under four minutes remaining in the contest. The sophomore scored five straight points as Western New England sealed the contest with a 10-0 run that saw the Golden Bears open up a 53-46 lead with 40 seconds remaining.

Notes
• Western New England shot percent 50-percent (12-of-24) from the field in the second half after connecting at a 16.6 percent (5-of-30) rate over the first two quarters.
• Freshman forward Emily Scurka (Billerica, Mass.) made 1-of-2 field goals and all six of her free throw attempts en route to an eight-point, four-rebound performance in nine minutes off the bench.
• Junior guard Meghan Gilhool (Montrose, Pa.) was Western New England's second leading rebounder with eight boards. 

Up Next
Both teams will be back in action on Tuesday at 5 p.m., as Western New England (1-1) hosts Worcester State and MCLA (1-1) travels to Dean.