DARTMOUTH, Mass. – The nationally ranked No. 19 UMass Dartmouth women's basketball team opened the new year with win against Eastern Connecticut State University, 84-42, in Little East Conference (LEC) action on Saturday afternoon from the Tripp Athletic Center. The Corsairs improved to 2-0 in conference play while the Warriors suffered their first league loss of the season.
Shortly after senior
Amaris Mills laid in the opening basket of the game, the Corsairs generated an 11-0 run to take an early 15-2 commanding lead. Graduate student
Teja Andrews posted six of the 11 points for UMass Dartmouth while Mills drained the first triple of the afternoon. Kya Mayo started the second quarter with a three-pointer for the Warriors, but graduate student
Kaylin Zalewski quickly answered with a triple of her own to make it 18-9.
UMass Dartmouth continued to build their offense going on a 14-0 run kicked off by four points from graduate student
Carly Whiteside and finished off by an and-one play from Zalewski to extend their advantage to 31-11 with 2:31 remaining in the first half. A triple by Zalewski and a late layup from fifth year
Jemima Joseph gave the Corsairs a 21-point lead heading into the break.
Mills dropped a pair of three-pointers early in the third quarter to pull UMass Dartmouth away with a 47-20 lead. With 3:52 on the clock, graduate student
Jane McCauley knocked down a triple to give the home team a dominate 35-point advantage. In the final two minutes of the third, respectively, Joseph scored eight of the last 10 points for the Corsairs to put UMass Dartmouth ahead 67-32 entering the fourth.
Sophomore
Shelby Companion drained two triples, both assisted by junior
Melanie DeMeo, to kick off the final quarter of the game. A nine point run finished off by a good layup from junior
Kasey Oliver made it an 82-34 game at the midway point of the quarter. Junior
Cristina Negron laid in the final basket for UMass Dartmouth to cement the Corsairs 84-42 victory over the Warriors and second conference win of the season.
Zalewski (5-8 FG, 3-5 3-FG, 1-1 FT) and Andrews (7-8 FG) each recorded 14 points for the Corsairs and both hauled in a team-high eight rebounds apiece. Joseph scored a season-high 13 points (4-11 FG, 2-2 3-FG, 3-3 FT) in the win along with seven rebounds, one assist, and a steal. McCauley posted 12 points featuring two three-pointers on nine attempts while Mills rounded out the double figure afternoon with 11 points (4-13 FG, 3-9 3-FG).
On the defensive end, Whiteside produced a pair of blocks along with eight points, five rebounds, four assists, and a steal. Companion also recorded a block in the contest with six points after going 2-for-2 from behind the arc.
UMass Dartmouth is back home for their next Little East tilt hosting Rhode Island College on Wednesday, Jan. 8. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. from the Tripp Athletic Center.
