BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – The Bridgewater State University women's basketball team withstood a furious second half rally as the Bears downed Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) rival Fitchburg State University, 65-60, on Thursday evening at the Tinsley Center.
The Bears improve to 10-9 on the season with the win and 4-2 in the MASCAC. The visiting Falcons slip to 10-7 overall and 4-2 in conference play. The two teams are tied with Westfield State atop the MASCAC standings
Senior guard Jenna Williamson (Ludlow, Mass.) paced the hosts with her second straight double-double as she notched 16 points and ten rebounds. Williamson, who also added two blocked shots and four steals, increased her career scoring total to 1,216 points. Former BearLaurie Berryman (1992-1996) is the program's all-time leading scorer with 1,265 points.
Senior guard Elisha Homich (Ludlow, Mass.) added a team-best 18 points to go along with three rebounds, four assists, a block and a steal. Homich now has 962 points in her career.
Bridgewater used a 10-1 run to open up a double-digit advantage late in the first half as the Bears held a 36-23 lead at the break. Williamson scored all 16 of her points in the opening stanza. The Bears held the Falcons to 33% (10-30) shooting and forced 12 turnovers over the first twenty minutes.
The Bears carried that momentum into the second half outscoring the Falcons by a margin of 19-8 over the first 7 ½ minutes to open up a 24-poind lead (55-31). Bridgewater, however, would struggle mightily from that point on scoring just ten points the rest of the way.
The Falcons chipped away at the lead using runs of 11-0 and 15-1 to make it a three-point game (63-60) with just 15 seconds remaining in the game. A pair of Britney Payne (Franklin, KY) free throws capped of the 15-1 run. Fitchburg was forced to foul following Payne's free throws and sent BSU sophomore guard Vanesa Conceicao (New Bedford, Mass.) to the charity stripe shooting one-on-one with just six seconds on the clock. Conceicao calmly sank both free throws as the Bears would escape with the win.
In the second half, it was the Falcons who forced the Bears into mistakes. Bridgewater turned the ball over 15 times in the final stanza which led directly to 16 Fitchburg points. The Bears also hurt themselves at the free throw line making just 2 of 8 free throw attempts in the half before Conceicao buried her two at the end.
Senior forward Amy Fahey (Wilmington, Mass.) led the way for the Falcons as she posted a double-double with a game-high 19 points and 13 rebounds. Payne also finished with a double-double scoring 16 points and pulling down ten boards.
Conceicao finished with seven points and three steals in 14 minutes off the bench, while junior guard Melissa Daigle (Rockland, Mass.) added six points, seven rebounds and three steals. Senior guard Colleen Hanscom (Melrose, Mass.) chipped in with ten rebounds to equal Williamson for the team high. Hanscom also dished out three assists and recorded a block and a steal.
The MASCAC schedule resumes for both teams on Saturday afternoon. The Bears travel to MCLA for a one o'clock game with the Trailblazers, while the Falcons entertain Salem State University also at one.