Golden Bears Stifle Curry on Senior Day, 52-30

Orbann registers 5^th double-double of the season with 21 points & 10 rebounds

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (February 2, 2019) – The Western New England University women's basketball team used a stifling defensive performance to earn a 52-30 victory over Curry College on Saturday afternoon in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.

Prior to the start of the contest, Western New England honored senior guard Meghan Gilhool (Montrose, Pa.) for her contributions to the women's basketball program over the past four years.

Top Performers
Western New England was led by junior forward Meghan Orbann (East Hampton, Conn.), who posted her fifth double-double of the season with a game-high 21 points, ten rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block. 

Gilhool finished two points shy of matching her season-high with 11 points to go with five rebounds (four offensive), two assists and one steal.

Junior guard Emily Farrell (New Fairfield, Conn.) chipped in with nine points, six boards, four assists and two steals.

Curry senior guard Emily Irwin (Billerica, Mass.) paced the Colonels with a team-high 19 points, six steals, three rebounds and one assist.

Game Review
Western New England was limited to just one point over the first four minutes of the contest, but the Golden Bears tied the score at 4-4 when Farrell completed a three-point play at the 5:46 mark.

Western New England pulled ahead for the first time (7-4) on a Gilhool triple a minute later, and the home team led 13-8 through ten minutes of play. The Golden Bears secured nine offensive rebounds in the first quarter and held a 17-4 advantage on the glass overall.

An 8-0 Western New England run to start the second quarter allowed the Golden Bears to extend their lead to 13 (21-8), before Curry ended its long scoring drought with 4:38 left in the half when Irwin made 1-of-2 free throws. Western New England went into the break with a 25-14 edge.

The Golden Bears opened the third quarter with another run, this time scoring seven straight points to open up an 18-point cushion (32-14). Gilhool fueled the run with a three-pointer and a pair of free throws.

Irwin scored Curry's first points of the period at the free throw line with 4:52 on the clock. Western New England held the Colonels without a field goal in the third quarter and limited the visitors to just five points at the charity stripe, as the Golden Bears led 36-19 heading into the fourth.

Western New England continued add to its lead over the final ten minutes, as the Golden Bears outscored the Colonels 18-11 to extend the final margin to 22.

Notes
• Western New England forced 16 Curry turnovers and limited the Colonels to 16.3 percent shooting.
• The Golden Bears held a commanding 55-28 rebounding advantage, with all five starters pulling down at least five boards.
• Western New England now has its longest winning streak of the season with six consecutive victories.

Up Next
Western New England (15-7, 9-4 CCC) will look to extend its streak to seven games on Tuesday night, when the Golden Bears travel to Newport, R.I. to take on Salve Regina. Curry (10-10, 7-5 CCC) returns home to host Gordon on Tuesday.