BEVERLY, Mass. – Endicott took an eleven point lead at the half and didn't look back on Saturday afternoon, beating visiting Curry College 74-51 in women's basketball action at MacDonald Gymnasium. Since dropping their first contest in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), the Gulls (8-5, 5-1 CCC) have won five straight conference games to catapult themselves to the top of the league standings.  

Curry sees their ledger drop to 4-8, losing for the third straight game in the CCC (2-3), and their fourth overall.

Endicott rode the hot hand of sophomore Samantha Crough (Cohasset, Mass.), who scored 18 points in the first half en route to a game-high 23. It was Crough's eight consecutive game in double-digit points, and her second straight contest scoring 20 or more. She shot 10-18 from the field (55 percent) and hit two of the four three pointers she attempted. Crough pitched in on the glass as well, grabbing eight rebounds and helping Endicott to a 47-34 advantage on the boards.

The Gulls had four total players in double-digits, including freshman Kayleen Whall (Foxboro, Mass.), whose 13 points and 13 rebounds gave her the only double-double of the day. Whall also had three steals, a block and an assist off the bench for the Gulls. Jennifer White (Lisbon, N.H.) added 14 points and three steals in the victory.

With the game tied at four, Endicott went on an 11-1 run to take a ten-point advantage with just under seven minutes gone. The Colonels fought back and came within four points with six minutes left on a layup by freshman Kylie Beltz (Pequot Lakes, Minn.). Beltz led the way for Curry with 13 points and seven rebounds, but she could bring them no closer than four points the rest of the game. Endicott capped the half with a 13-6 run, finished by a layup by sophomore Jordan Ferland (Charlestown, N.H.), who scored ten points on the afternoon and led Endicott defensively with four blocks.

A Hailey Rafferty (Worcester, Mass.) layup just under two minutes into the second half brought Curry within ten points at 38-28, but from there the Gulls took over and used a 17-6 stretch to run their lead to 21 points and finished out the game strong, aided by a fast break layup by Jen McBrien (Medfield, Mass.), on one of senior point guard Nicole Heffernan's (Londonderry, N.H.) six assists. The play was started when Heffernan collected one of her two steals on the afternoon, to go with a block, four points and four rebounds.

Endicott finished the game shooting 45.5 percent from the field, to just 26.5 percent by Curry. Jeanette Fallon (Nashua, N.H.) and Carolyn Houston (Melrose, N.Y.) each pitched in 9 points for the visitors, with Fallon leading Curry with four steals. Rafferty scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds in the losing effort.

The Gulls continue in the heart of their conference schedule next Tuesday when they play local rival Gordon College in a North Shore Cup contest. The game is set to tip off at 6:00 pm at MacDonald Gymnasium.

Curry will host CCC foe Western New England at the same time in Milton, Mass.