BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – A 62-point second half scoring outburst propelled the Bridgewater State University women's basketball team to a convincing 100-75 victory over Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action on Saturday afternoon in Bridgewater.
Bridgewater improves to 11-3 on the season with the win and 2-1 in the MASCAC, while Fitchburg falls to 7-6 overall and 1-1 in conference play. The 100 points is the most by a BSU women's hoops team since the 1989-1990 squad tallied 104 points in a win over Framingham State on February 20, 1990.
Freshman guard Jenna Williamson (Ludlow, Mass.) led six Bears in double-figure scoring as she finished with a game-high 18 points on 6 of 11 shooting which included four three-pointers. She also added five rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals.
Forty-One of Bridgewater's 62 second half points came within the first nine minutes of the stanza as the Bears' turned an eight-point halftime advantage into a 27-point lead (79-52). Bridgewater knocked down nine three-pointers in the half with Williamson and senior guard Brittney Chappron (Braintree, Mass.) connecting for three apiece.
Chappron finished with 15 points, three rebound and four steals. Freshman forward Megan Boutilette (Charlton, Mass.) tallied 15 points, three boards, three blocks and two steals, while junior forward Monica-Sabina Bharoocha (North Smithfield, R.I.) notched 14 points on 6 of 8 shooting to go along with four rebounds and four assists.
Senior guard Corey Cuddihy (Scituate, Mass.) and sophomore forward Michaela Cosby (Walpole, Mass.) also finished in double figures for the Bears. Cuddihy scored 12 points to go along with six assists and four steals while Cosby registered ten points, six rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Sophomore guard Elisha Homich (Ludlow, Mass.) added six points, eight assists, six steals and three boards.
Bridgewater recorded 22 steals in the contest and forced 37 Falcon turnovers. The Bears connected on 12 of 27 three-pointers for the game and assisted on 30 of their 37 made field goals.
Senior forward Melissa Proffitt (Hubbardston, Mass.) paced visiting Fitchburg with 18 points and four rebounds. Freshman guard Amy Fahey (Wilmington, Mass.) added 17 points, six boards and a pair of steals, while junior forward Rebecca Goreham (Quincy, Mass.) chipped in with a double-double effort of ten points and ten rebounds to go along with four steals.
Fitchburg shot 42% (24-57) from the floor for the game and connected on just 3 of 16 (19%) three-point field goal attempts. The Falcons held a 49-34 rebounding advantage but that was mostly due to giving up 21 more field goal attempts.
Bridgewater will host MASCAC rival Worcester State University next Thursday at 5:30 PM. Fitchburg will also entertain Worcester on Tuesday at 5:30.