Women's Basketball Continues to Roll, Advance to 6-1 in LEC

CASTLETON, VT. - University of Massachusetts Dartmouth junior Kaylin Zalewski led the way for the Corsairs once again in a 73-71 nail-biter victory over Castleton University. This win marks FIVE in a row for UMassD.
 
The Corsairs are in the midst of a season-best five-game win streak to improve to 10-6 overall, including a 6-1 mark in the conference circuit, while the Spartans fell to 10-5 and 3-3 against conference opponents.  

UMass Dartmouth used a balanced scoring attack as all five starters reached double digits in scoring, led by Zalewski.  Zalewski was 7-for-15 from the field and a perfect 4-for-4 from the foul line to produce 15 points.  She also collected six rebounds. Graduate student Jessica Carroll and junior Teja Andrews each netted 14. The Corsairs nearly had two players tally double-doubles, from grad students Jordan Moretti (11 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists) and Caroline Wilson (10 points, 8 rebounds).

Castleton saw three players put up double-digit points, including sophomore Liz Bailey with a game-high 21 points. The Spartans also got good minutes from Elise Magro (16 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists) and Kelly Vuz (15 points).
 
This game was tight from the very beginning. UMass Dartmouth struggled from the field in the first quarter, shooting 7-of-22 (31.8%) versus Castleton's 7-of-17 (41.2%). Despite the early struggles from the floor, UMD kept the game even at 18 going into the second period. 
 
Freshman Melanie DeMeo opened the scoring for the Corsairs in the second period with a deep ball. UMass Dartmouth committed seven fouls in the quarter and Castleton capitalized, sinking 10 of their 11 attempts from the stripe. The free-throws, along with a late three-pointer from Spartans freshman Emily Adams, gave Castleton a 39-32 advantage at the half.
 
Four minutes into the third quarter, the Corsairs allowed Castleton to extend their lead to 11 points, the largest lead of the game. Moretti, Andrews and company answered the call, going on an 11-2 run and narrowing the deficit back to just two points. UMassD entered the fourth quarter with the momentum swinging their way, trailing 50-48. 
 
The two LEC teams traded buckets in the first five minutes of the final quarter. Back-to-back fast break layups from Andrews and Carroll gave the Corsairs their first lead since quarter number two. With four minutes remaining, Wilson hit a massive deep ball to go up by four. Wilson's three was immediately followed up by Carroll who hit one of her own. With a seven-point lead and less than two minutes on the clock, Castleton was forced to send the Corsairs to the free-throw line. UMass Dartmouth went 7-for-12 from the stripe in the fourth, which ultimately was enough to hang on and come away with a 73-71 road victory. 

After a three-game road stretch where UMass Dartmouth went 3-0, the Corsairs look forward to hosting Rhode Island College (14-2, 7-0 LEC) on Wednesday at 5:30 PM. This is the first matchup between these two conference-leaders this season.