NEWTON, Mass. – Sophomore Alexis Chappell (Springfield, Mass.) recorded 16 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the floor as the Lasell College women's basketball team defeated Wentworth, 55-42, in the season opener for both squads.
The hosts scored the first five points of the game before the Leopards countered with an 8-0 run to take an 8-5 lead on a freshman Carly Rogers (Scarborough, Maine) layup with 13:55 left. Rogers' bucket came on the heels of a 3-pointer and a 3-point play by senior Jordan Biggar (Beverly, Mass.).
Lasell held Wentworth to just four points over the final 13:55 of the stanza, while going on a 23-4 run to take a 28-12 lead at the break. The Lasers shot 10-for-17 (58.8 percent) from the floor in the first half and held Wentworth to 17.2 percent (5-for-29).
Wentworth started the second half on an 8-3 run, thanks in part to a pair of senior Ashley Conway (Danvers, Mass.) 3-pointers, cutting the lead to 31-20 with 15:46 remaining. However, an 8-0 Laser run pushed the lead to 19 with13:00 left.
The Leopards cut the lead back to 14 before Lasell brought it back to 19 with 6:04 left and would outscore the hosts 10-4 over the final 4:30 of play.
Sophomore Danielle Autencio (Montville, Conn.) added a dozen points, nine rebounds, and three assists in the win while senior Kim Archibald (Lewiston, Maine) had six points, eight rebounds, and three assists. Lasell shot 51.3 percent from the floor on the evening.
Junior Kendra Kerr (Marshfield, Mass.) led the Leopards with 14 points to go along with five rebounds and three assists. Conway added 12 points and four steals while Rogers had a game-high 10 rebounds in her collegiate debut.
Both teams are back in action on Saturday as Lasell (1-0) hosts Daniel Webster and Wentworth (0-1) is at Pine Manor.