Women’s Basketball Stays Undefeated at Home with 74-46 Win over Nichols

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (January 15, 2020) – The Western New England University women's basketball defeated Nichols by a score of 74-46 in CCC action on Wednesday evening at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.

Top Performers
The Golden Bears were led by senior forward Meghan Orbann (East Hampton, Conn.). Orbann had a double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Seniors Emily Farrell (New Fairfield, Conn.) and Courtney Carlson (Woodbury, Conn.) each added 11 points.

The Bison were led by freshman guard Alexis Finnerty (Chester, Conn.), who led all scorers with 15 points. Junior guard Isabella Nerney (Guilford, Conn.) had 11 points for Nichols.

Game Review
The Golden Bears started off strong to begin the game. A jumper by sophomore guard Julia Quinn (Thomaston, Conn.) gave Western New England a 14-2 within the first six minutes.

The Bison cut the lead down to six with 0:02 left in the first quarter when freshman Leandro Ortiz (Ridgewood, N.Y.) made a layup to make the score of 18-12 in favor of the Golden Bears going into the second quarter.

A 3-pointer by Farrell with 7:14 left in the half capped off a 7-0 run for the Golden Bears to start the second quarter to give them a 25-12 lead. Western New England would outscore Nichols 10-7 over the rest quarter to take a 35-19 lead at halftime. Farrell was the spark in the second quarter, scoring six of her 11 points.

Western New England pushed their lead to 21, their highest at that point in the game, when Orbann made a jumper at the 6:36 mark of the third quarter to put the Golden Bears up 43-22. The Golden Bears and the Bison traded baskets over the new minutes. Then, with the score 53-34, Western New England went on an 8-0 run to finish off the third quarter, giving them a 61-34 lead going into the final quarter.

The Golden Bears outscored the Bison 13-12 during the fourth quarter. Western New England took their largest lead of the night, 32, when freshman Bela Cloutier (South Portland, Conn.) made a free throw with 1:26 remaining to give the Golden Bears a 74-42 lead. The Bison scored the last four points of the game, giving the Golden Bears a 74-46 victory.

Notes
• Western New England is now 6-0 at home this season.
• The Golden Bears are 5-1 in CCC play this season, currently sitting in second place.

Up Next
Western New England (12-3) hits the road on Saturday afternoon to take on U. of New England in a matchup between the top two teams in the CCC. Nichols (3-11) returns home to take on Curry on Saturday afternoon.