BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Sophomore forward
Shelly DePina (New Bedford, MA) tallied a
season-high 22 points to go along with seven rebounds and
three steals to lead the Bridgewater State College women's
basketball team to a 74-65 Massachusetts State College Athletic
Conference (MASCAC) victory over Worcester State this afternoon in
Bridgewater.
Bridgewater State clinches at least a share of the MASCAC regular
season title as the Bears improve to 9-1 in conference play and
13-9 overall. Worcester State falls to 13-10 on the season
and 7-4 in the MASCAC.
DePina connected on 7 of 13 field goal attempts and was 8-for-9
from the free throw line as she was one of five Bears to finish in
double-figure scoring.
Freshman guard Elisha Homich (Ludlow, MA) notched
14 points, three assists, two rebound and two steals as she was a
perfect 9-for-9 at the charity stripe. Freshman forward
Michaela Cosby (Walpole, MA) added ten points,
seven boards (four offensive), and three steals. Cosby was
also perfect at the line as she was 6-for-6. As a team, Bridgewater
connected on 23 of 24 (96%) free throw attempts.
Also finishing in double-figures were senior forward
Michaela Johnson (Riverside, RI) and junior guard
Brittney Chappron (Braintree, MA). Johnson
scored 12 points on 6 of 10 shooting while also grabbing four
rebounds to go along with two assists and three steals.
Chappron chipped in with 11 points as well as three assists and a
pair of boards.
Freshman guard Kara Rogers (Lowell, MA) paced the
visiting Lancers off the bench with 14 points as she was a 4-for-7
from the floor including 3 of 3 from three-point range.
Rogers was also 3-for-3 at the line and added two assists and five
steals. Senior forward Bri Flanders
(Southampton, MA) chipped in with 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting
while also pulling down five rebounds.
Senior forward Reilly O'Keefe (Warren, MA) added
12 points, five boards and three steals for Worcester, while
freshman center Meaghan O'Keefe (Warren, MA) came
off the bench to score 12 points on 6 of 11 shooting.
The Bears had the early 12-10 lead seven minutes into the contest
before they went on a 14-4 run to take a 26-14 edge with at 8:54
left. Over the next four minutes Worcester State would outscore the
Bears 13-5 to trail by four (31-27), but Bridgewater State closed
out the half with a 9-2 surge to lead 40-29 at the intermission.
With Bridgewater State ahead 49-35 with 14:27 remaining in the
second half, Rogers sparked a 14-0 Worcester State run as the
visitors knotted the game 49-49 at the 9:55 mark. Crosby canned a
pair of free throws to stop the rally before Flanders drained a
lay-up to tie things up at 51-51.
From there Bridgewater State converted three Lancer miscues into
seven points as the Bears had a 58-51 advantage with 7:51 left to
play. Flanders then converted a three-point play to whittle the
lead back to four points. The Bears, however, would not
falter as they maintained more than a seven point margin for the
remainder of the game. BSC would go 12-for-12 from the charity
stripe down the stretch to keep the Lancers in check.
Saturday was Bridgewater State's WBCA "Pink Zone" game for breast cancer awareness. The WBCA Pink Zone® initiative is a global, unified effort for the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's (WBCA) nation of coaches to assist in raising breast cancer awareness on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond.