DARTMOUTH, Mass. – The UMass Dartmouth women's basketball team defeated Wesleyan University (Conn.), 69-56, on Sunday afternoon during the final day of the 2025 Lafrance Hospitality Classic from the Tripp Gym. The Corsairs 2-0 sweep on the weekend moves them to 2-3 overall on the young season while the Cardinals dropped to a 2-2 mark on the year.
The Cardinals jumped out to an early 4-0 lead before senior guard
Melanie DeMeo laid in the first basket of the day for UMass Dartmouth to make it 4-2. DeMeo finished an and-one play followed by a good diving layup by graduate student guard
Yasmine Santos to cut the visitors advantage down to 8-7. Senior guard
Kasey Oliver gave the Corsairs their first lead of the afternoon by dropping four straight points to take 11-10 edge with 3:10 on the clock. Graduate student guard
Kaila Pruitt knocked down a shot from behind the arc to take 16-12 lead to close out the opening quarter.
Pruitt kicked off the second quarter with another three-point shot of the feed from DeMeo to extend the Corsairs advantage to 19-12. Santos and DeMeo each posted a basket to claim an eight-point lead for the home team with 7:11 left in the opening half. A few minutes later, senior guard
Cristina Negron drained her first triple of the afternoon to take a 26-17 advantage. The Cardinals quickly answered with a pair of three-pointers to make it a one possession game. UMass Dartmouth then went on a 12-2 run featuring two triples from Pruitt to go ahead 40-27 at the end of the second.
Pruitt once again got the Corsairs offense going to start the third quarter by scoring the opening five points. UMass Dartmouth took control midway through the quarter after posting nine unanswered points highlighted by a three-pointer from first year guard
Carly McDonald. Santos posted a late basket followed by two good free throws from DeMeo to take a 20-point cushion heading into the final quarter.
In the fourth quarter, DeMeo recorded a pair of jump shots to in the first two minutes of action to keep the Corsairs up 62-41. After Kaylin Genda finished a driving layup for Wesleyan, Oliver responded with a quick basket to make it 65-43 with 4:55 left in the contest. The Cardinals capitalized from the charity stripe going 6-for-6 before Madie Dayton nailed a triple with 1:52 on the clock. DeMeo cemented UMass Dartmouth's weekend sweep with two good free throws to defeat the Cardinals by a final score of 69-56.
DeMeo, who was named the Lafrance Hospitality Tournament Most Valuable Player, finished the game with a 21 points (7-12 FG, 1-2 3FG, 6-7 FT) to go along with a season-high seven rebounds, three assists, one steal, and a block. Pruitt recorded 17 points for the Corsairs, good for a season-high, after going 6-for-11 from the field including five made triples (5-8). She also posted four rebounds, two blocks, and a steal in the win over the Cardinals. Negron produced double-digits with 11 points (4-12 FG, 3-10 3FG, 2-2 FT) as well as four boards and a pair of steals.
Santos was recognized with All-Tournament Team honors for her performance on the weekend and finished the afternoon with nine points (4-10 FG, 1-2 FT), two rebounds and two steals. McDonald produced career-highs with six rebounds and five assists for UMass Dartmouth to go along with five points (1-3 FG, 1-3 3FG, 2-2 FT).
The Corsairs return to action on Tuesday, November 23 hosting Roger Williams University for their next non-conference tilt starting at 6:00 p.m. from the Tripp Gym.
