BOSTON, Mass. -- Freshman forward Shelly DePina (New Bedford, MA) posted her third straight double-double to lead the Bridgewater State College women's basketball team to a 66-61 victory over host UMass Boston this evening at the Clark Athletic Center in Boston.
DePina finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds while also recording five steals for the Bears who improve to 8-6 on the season.
Bridgewater trailed 25-24 at the half after shooting just 29% (9-for-31) from the floor in the opening stanza. The Bears actually scored the first nine points of the game and held a 12-point advantage (21-9) with 8 ½ minutes left in the on the clock. However, host UMass (2-12) responded with an 11-1 run and outscored the Bears 16-3 over the final 8 ½ minutes to take a one-point lead into the intermission.
The game was close throughout the second half with neither team leading by more than seven points. Bridgewater would reclaim the lead (43-42) with 11:06 remaining on a three-point play by DePina. After UMass battled back to tie the game at 47-47, sophomore Corey Cuddihy (Scituate, MA) put the Bears back on top for good as she buried a three-pointer at the 6:27 mark. Bridgewater would build the lead to as many as seven points and would hang on for the hard-fought win.
Cuddihy came off the bench to finish with 11 points in just 14 minutes. Junior guard Brittany Chappron (Braintree, MA) added 11 points, three assists and five steals.
Freshman guard Laniece Langford (Boston, MA) led the way for UMass as she came off the bench to post a double-double with 15 points and 11 reboounds. Langford also dished out six assists and recorded three steals.
Bridgewater State hosts MASCAC opponent Fitchburg State College on Saturday at 1 PM. UMass Boston will be in action again on Saturday when it hosts Little East Conference foe Keene State College also at 1:00.