BOSTON, Mass. – Simmons College sophomore forward Liz Brasa (East Hartford, Conn.) posted a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Sharks over Lesley University, 54-33, this evening at Moore Gymnasium in Boston, Mass. With the win, the Sharks improve to 1-3 on the season, while the Lynx fall to 0-3.
Junior guard Jackie Ewing (Hong Kong, China) netted a game-high 14 points and added three rebounds, three assists and three thefts to lead the Lynx, while senior center Grace Amato (Sharon, Vt.) finished a point short of a double-double with nine points and 10 caroms in addition to a pair of blocks. Junior Ari Dimou (Manchester, N.H.) came off the bench to score six points while drabbing four rebounds and dishing out a pair of assists.
Brasa added an assist, a steal and a blocked shot to her night for Simmons, while Jamie Zoldy (Watertown, Conn.) finished with a career-high 11 points and five steals to go with four assists and a rebound. Junior guard Jennifer Janiak (Chelmsford, Mass.) chipped in with nine points, two assists and a rebound and sophomore Ashley McAdams (Freeport, N.Y.) ended with eight points, five boards, an assist and a steal.
Simmons opened the game by scoring six of the first eight points in the first three minutes, before the Lynx countered with a 6-2 run, led by four points from Dimouo knot the game at 8-8 with 11:43 remaining in the half. The Sharks put together a 9-3 run to stake a 17-11 cushion with 6:29 to go in the first half. Simmons later maintained a 19-13 lead at the 3:44 mark, but Lesley scored the next two field goals to cut the deficit to 19-17 with 2:34 showing, before Zoldy knocked down a jump shot to give the Sharks the eventual halftime margin of 21-17.
The Lynx erased a four-point halftime deficit by holding the Sharks scoreless for the first 5:43 of the second half, while scoring seven unanswered points, to take a 24-21 lead with 14:39 to play in the half. Junior forward Nicole Alberghini (Northborough, Mass.) found the scoring column in the second half for Simmons with a made free throw at 14:17 to make it 24-22.
The free throw sparked a 9-0 run for the Sharks to give them a 30-24 lead with 10:59 showing in the second half. Simmons later held a 32-28 margin with 9:12 left in the period, before closing out the game on a 22-5 stretch, fueled by five points each from Brasa and Zoldy, to put the game out of reach and take the victory.
The Lynx will open their home schedule when they host Fisher College in a non-conference tilt on December 2nd at 8:00p while the Sharks will return to action on Saturday, November 29th when they host Massachusetts Institute of Technology at 1:00p.
Release courtesy Simmons College Sports Information.