Strong Finish Lifts Golden Bears to 80-74 Triumph over Rutgers-Camden at Neumann Tip-Off Tournament

WNE takes control with 10-0 fourth quarter run

ASTON, Pa. (November 17, 2018) – The Western New England University women's basketball team used a 10-0 run midway through the fourth quarter to pull ahead of Rutgers-Camden in an eventual 80-74 victory for the Golden Bears on Saturday afternoon at the Neumann University Tip-Off Tournament.

Following their win, the Golden Bears (3-0) advance to Sunday's championship contest at 2 p.m. to take on host Neumann, which defeated Hood College 80-75 in overtime. Rutgers-Camden (2-1) will face Hood in the consolation game at noon.

Top Performers
Junior guard Emily Farrell (New Fairfield, Conn.) continued her strong early season play with a career-high 21 points that came on 5-of-10 shooting from the field (2-of-3 from three-point range) and 9-of-13 from the charity stripe. Farrell also collected five boards, five assists, two steals and one block.

Junior forward Alyssa Stefanelli (Chicopee, Mass.) contributed 14 points and four rebounds off the bench, while sophomore forward Emily Scurka (Billerica, Mass.) just missed her first career double-double with ten points and a team-high nine boards (five offensive).

Rutgers-Camden was led by junior guard Fatimah Williams (Camden, N.J.), who scored 18 points to go with five rebounds and two assists.

Senior guard Gabby Greene (Howell, N.J.) finished with 15 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals, while freshman guard Wykira Johnson-Kelly (Franklinville, N.J.) chipped in with 14 points, eight boards, two assists and one steal.

Game Review
In a back and forth game that featured six ties and seven lead changes, the Scarlet Raptors pulled ahead for the final time (65-62) on a three-pointer by sophomore Shane Holmes (Mount Laurel, N.J.) with 7:28 to play in the fourth quarter.

Western New England tied the score a minute later on a triple by junior Meghan Orbann (East Hampton, Conn.), which sparked the Golden Bears' decisive 10-0 run. Orbann then put the Golden Bears ahead for good with a layup at the 5:46 mark. A steal by Farrell led to a Lauren Chadwick (Gardiner, Maine) layup that pushed the lead to four (69-65), before Farrell sank a three to cap the surge and give Western New England a 72-65 edge with 4:42 remaining.

Rutgers-Camden was able to close the gap to two (74-72) on a Holmes jumper with 2:36 on the clock, but the Scarlet Raptors got no closer. Despite missing four three throws down the stretch, the Golden Bears were able to seal the win at the line and the Western New England defense forced three late turnovers.

The Golden Bears, who trailed 16-11 after ten minutes of play, scored 29 second quarter points to gain a 40-38 edge at the break. Western New England saw its lead grow to five (47-42) on a three-pointer by junior Sydney Fisher (Strafford, N.H.) early in the third quarter, and eventually six (55-49) following a technical foul free throw by Farrell midway through the period, but Rutgers-Camden rallied to tie the contest heading into the fourth quarter.

Notes
• Western New England owned advantages in second chance points (11-4), bench points (32-25) and points in the paint (34-28).
• The Golden Bears shot 55 percent (11-of-20) from the field in the second quarter and 58.3 percent (7-of-12) in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Scarlet Raptors 52-39 combined over the two periods.
• Six different Golden Bears scored at least eight points in the contest.