WESTFIELD, Mass. – Sophomore guard Briana Kelly (Hampden/Minnechaug HS) scored a career-high 23 points and Westfield State University rebounded from a slow start to defeat MCLA, 66-54, in a key Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) game on Thursday, Feb. 3.

Westfield, which only led 22-20 at halftime, remains in sole possession of first place with a 6-1 MASCAC mark; the Owls are 14-5 overall. MCLA is 4-3 and 12-7.

The Owls struggled offensively in the first half and did not score in the opening five minutes of the game. But similar to both halves of their 96-80 victory over Bridgewater State last Saturday, they picked up the pace in the second half, outscoring MCLA, 44-34, and leading by as many as 19 points.

"If you would have told me my top two players (Ashley Finnegan (Worcester/Holy Name), Cassy Jouannet (Conway/Frontier Regional)) would be a combined 2-for-19 from the field in the first half and we would be up by two at halftime I would not have believed it," said Westfield head coach Andrea Bertini. "But we played tough defense for the most part and got a big game out of Bri Kelly."

Kelly scored 17 of her points in the Owls' high-scoring second half and also had a game-high four steals. Finnegan posted another double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds but she was only 5 for 20 from the field. Jouannet had 10 points and seven rebounds and shot 5 for 14 from the field.

Sophomore defensive standout Jenny Bell (Northampton) was perfect from the field again (4 for 4) and scored nine points along with sophomore sharpshooter Courtney DelRatez (Adams/Hoosac Valley), who sparked the Owls off the bench with nine points on three 3-point baskets.

"Except for the first few minutes of the second half we played much better in the second half," said Bertini. "We ran our break and offense well, passed well, picked some points off MCLA turnovers, and really took the ball well to the basket."

Junior forward Jen Wehner (Cooperstown, NY) scored nine of her team-high 18 points in the opening two minutes of the second half to give the Trailblazers a 29-27 lead. Wehner, who also grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds, now has 993 career points.

Westfield called a timeout to regroup and tied the score on a Kelly jumper then took the lead for good, 34-31, on a DelRatez bomb from beyond the arc. DelRatez followed with another three-ball then the Owls went on an 11-0, scoring on five layups, for a 53-37 lead with 7:46 remaining. They took their biggest lead, 62-43, with 4:28 remaining.

The Owls shot 57 percent in the second half when Finnegan and Jouannet scored nine and eight points, respectively. Junior point guard Janae Jones (Springfield/Minnechaug) played another fine floor game with a game-high eight assists.

Also scoring in double figures for MCLA was Ali Dobrovoic (Little Falls, NY) with 14 points.