Chestnut Hill, Mass. – Junior forward Alycia Gervais (Windham, Conn.) continued her hot scoring hand of late, notching a game-high 22 points and added 11 rebounds for her sixth double double and the Daniel Webster women's basketball team continued to build on their record winning streak taking their ninth straight, an 85-34 thumping of host Wheelock College in a New England Collegiate Conference matchup Thursday night on the campus of Pine Manor College.
Junior Vanessa Bosques (N. Windham, Conn.) and senior Alyssa Regan (Salem, N.H.) added 16 points each with Bosques blocking four shots as the Eagles (10-2, 2-0 NECC) built a 40-22 halftime lead, held the host Wildcats to 12 second half points and remained perfect against Wheelock (3-9, 2-3 NECC) in the all time series (18-0) dating back to 1997.
The 10-2 mark is the best record for the Eagle program through 12 games in its history.
Daniel Webster shot 55.2 percent for the game, assisting 19 of its 32 baskets while notching 15 steals, seven blocks and a 40-26 rebounding advantage. Junior Sarah Paternostro (Glastonbury, Conn.) turned in seven points, six assists and four steals, while classmate Kacie Lang (Raymond, N.H.) added five helpers, four steals and a pair of rejections. Freshman Sarah Clark (Marlboro, Mass.) netted eight points off the bench.
Senior Joy Holliday netted a team-high eight points for Wheelock, while sophomore Keneisha Milton had a strong all-around contest, collecting seven points, 10 rebounds, four steals, two blocks and a pair of assists. Junior Maya Spratling added seven points and two blocks, while classmate Kayla Drescher notched six points, two steals and two helpers.
The teams went back and forth during the opening nearly six minutes, each scoring 10 points. Holliday's jumper after 17 seconds gave Wheelock its lone lead of the evening before the hosts forced four ties, with Milton's lay-up following her offensive board making it 10-10 at the 14:11 mark of the first half, the fifth deadlock of the period. From there, Daniel Webster scored the next 13 points during the ensuing 4:06, with Paternostro and Bosques beginning the run by canning three-pointers 11 seconds apart. Gervais tallied the final seven points.
The Wildcats twice drew within 11 points prior to the end of the half, first off a Milton jumper at 9:09 and again on sophomore Kailah Simon's (Norwalk, CT/Norwalk) lay-up with 7:11 left that made the score 25-14. A Regan jumper gave the Eagles their largest first-half lead, 40-18, before the hosts tallied the final four points, with Holliday beating the halftime buzzer off of Milton's inbounds pass. Wheelock held a 17-16 rebounding advantage by intermission, at which point Daniel Webster was shooting 52.9 percent, having knocked down a trio of threes.
Holliday's jumper 20 seconds into the second stanza brought Wheelock within 40-24, but the Eagles shot 58.3 percent from the floor while knocking down 15 free throws during the period, taking a 46-26 lead on a pair of Regan freebies at 16:51 and never again leading by fewer than 20.
The Eagles return to action on Saturday as they host Becker College in another NECC matchup beginning at 1:00 p.m. as part of a doubleheader at Mario Vagge Gymnasium. The Eagle men will face Becker at 3:00 p.m.