BOSTON, Mass. - Senior guard Meghan Kirwan (Melrose, Mass.) posted team-highs with 15 points and eight rebounds to lead the Emmanuel College women's basketball team to a 57-51 victory over Endicott College, Tuesday evening at the Jean Yawkey Center in Boston, Mass. With the win, the Saints improve to 6-3 on the year while the loss drops the Gulls to 4-4 overall.

Emmanuel, who never trailed in the contest, led by as many as 15 points early in the second half but Endicott didn't go away without a fight. A pair of free throws by freshman forward Vanessa Bramante (Stoneham, Mass.) gave the Saints a comfortable 46-33 lead with 9:02 left in the action but over the next four minutes, the Gulls were able to roll off an 11-0 run fueled by four points apiece from sophomore forward Samantha Crough (Cohasset, Mass.) and freshman forward Kayleen Whall (Foxboro, Mass) to make it 46-44 with 5:37 remaining. Freshman forward Lena Negri (Lancaster, Va.) converted one of two free throws with 5:13 remaining to pull Emmanuel ahead by three at 47-44 before a good jumper by sophomore forward Jordan Ferland (Charlestown, Mass.) made it a one point game (47-46) with 4:21 left in the second stanza.

The Saints would respond on the next possession as junior forward Laura Benvenuto (Wyckoff, N.J.) pulled up from behind the arc to drain a deep three point bucket to increase Emmanuel's lead to 50-46 at the 4:03 mark. On the ensuing possession, the Saints would force the Gulls to turn the ball over and make them pay as Negri would draw a fall and convert both shots from the charity stripe to give Emmanuel some breathing room with a 52-46 advantage and 2:32 left in regulation. A pair of free throws by Whall with 48 tics left on the clock would pull the Gulls to within four at 55-51 but Benvenuto would seal the win, converting two more from the stripe with nine seconds left to account for the 57-51 Saints victory.

In the first half, Emmanuel jumped out to an early 6-0 lead, forcing Endicott to call a timeout just 1:19 into the action. The Gulls would regroup and get into the offensive flow of the game as senior guard Nicole Heffernan (Londonderry, N.H.) converted a layup with 10:52 left in the stanza to pull the Gulls to within three at 16-13. The Saints would close out the half on a 16-6 run to take a 32-19 lead into the halftime intermission.

Bevenuto finished the game with 13 points on 4-7 shooting from the field while Negri chipped in with 12 points and five rebounds.

For the Gulls, Crough led the way with a team-high 15 points and eight rebounds while Whall added 12 points and five boards. Ferland was also in double-figures for Endicott netting 10 points to go along with eight rebounds.

Emmanuel is now idle until from NCAA play until Saturday, January 7 when they head to Newton, Mass. to take on Lasell College in their Great Northeast Athletic Conference opener. During the winter break, the Saints will travel to London, England to play in four exhibition games in the London South Bank Tournament beginning on Thursday, December 29. Endicott is also idle for the remainder of the calendar year, resuming action on Thursday, January 5 when they host Salem State in a 7:00 PM contest in Beverly, Mass.