BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – The visiting Rhode Island College women's basketball team used a dominant inside game to post a 75-54 victory over Bridgewater State University on Tuesday evening at the Tinsley Center.
RIC improves to 4-1 on the young season, while Bridgewater State falls to 1-4. The Anchorwomen have won each of the last five meetings at the Tinsley Center and hold a slight 16-15 edge in the all-time series.
Junior guard Sophia Guerrier (Waltham, Mass.) recorded a double-double with 20 points and a 12 rebounds to lead the way for RIC. Guerrier connected on 10 of 14 field goal attempts and added three steals.
Sophomore center Willcia McBorrough (Providence, R.I.) added a game-high 21 points for the Anchorwomen to go along with eight rebounds, three assists and three blocked shots, while senior forward Fataya Larry (Brooklyn, N.Y.) filled the stat sheet with 14 points, a game-best 16 rebounds and four blocks, three assists and a pair of steals.
The Anchorwomen outscored the Bears 66-28 in the paint, connected on 62.5% (35-56) of their field goal attempts from inside the arc and held a 59-35 rebounding advantage with a 20-12 edge on the offensive glass.
Junior center Destiny Fitzgerald (Medford, Mass.) was the only Bears in double digit scoring as she finished with ten points to go along with four rebounds, two assists and a steal. Freshman forward Nina Morrison (Raynham, Mass.) and sophomore guard Hannah Dziadyk (Wakefield, Mass.) added eight points apiece off the bench, while freshman guard Jordyn Lako (Attleboro, Mass.) notched seven points, three assists, three steals, two blocks and a team-best eight rebounds.
RIC led 17-10 after one quarter of play. An 8-0 run early in the second quarter extended the Anchorwomen lead to 25-12 with 6:37 remaining in the period. RIC took its biggest lead of the first half (27-14 ) following a Guerrier layup with 5:50 showing on the scoreboard.
The Bears clawed their way back and used an 11-2 run over a three-minute stretch to cut the deficit to 29-25. The spurt was highlighted by back-to-back layups from Morrison and capped off by a Nicole Bostick (East Taunton, Mass.) trifecta. Bridgewater closed to within three twice in the closing minutes before another Guerrier layup made it a five-point game (35-30) at the break.
Guerrier tallied 14 points on 7 of 9 shooting over the first 20 minutes, while McBorrough checked in with 13 points. Morrison paced the Bears with eight first-half points on 4 of 6 shooting.
The Anchorwomen opened the third quarter with a 16-3 run and outscored the Bears 23-8 in the decisive period to open up a decided 58-38 advantage. RIC got up by as many as 24 points (68-44, 70-46) in the fourth quarter before settling for the 75-54 win.
RIC shot 50% (35-70) for the game, but went 0-for-14 from behind the arc and just 5-for-16 (31%) at the free throw line.
Bridgewater State connected on 31% (20-65) of its field goals attempts, and finished 3-for-16 (19%) from three-point range and 11-for-19 (58%) at the charity stripe.
The Bears are off until Thursday, December 5th when they travel to Dean College for a six o'clock game with the Bulldogs. The Anchorwomen entertain Roger Williams on Sunday afternoon (Dec. 1) at three.