WESTFIELD, Mass. – Junior guard Lucy Barrett (Mt. Greylock/Williamstown, Mass.) scored 23 points to lead five Westfield State University players in double figures in scoring as the Owls rolled to a 109-76 win over Plymouth State in a non-conference women's basketball game at the Woodward Center on Tuesday evening.
Barrett finished 6-6 at the foul line to extend her school-record consecutive free throws streak to 26.
Westfield freshman guard Melissa Gray (Peabody HS/Ipswich, Mass.) had a career best 14 points, and Keri Paton (Westfield/Russell, Mass.) and Rebecca Sapouckey (Granby/Chicopee, Mass.) each added 14 for the Owls, with sophomore guard McKenna Doremus (Westford Academy/Townsend, Mass.) netting 10 points.
Westfield led 27-26 at the end of the first quarter, then extended the lead to 59-49 at the half thanks to a 32-point outburst in the second quarter. Westfield put the game away early with a 14-0 run to start the third quarter. The Owls' pressure defense forced the Panthers into nine turnovers in a 3:20 second stretch that ignited the run, as five different Owl players contributed points to the 14-0 spurt that was capped by a layup from Melissa Lubas (Beverly/Haverhill, Mass.).
Westfield took 92 shots from the floor compared to 62 from Plymouth. The Owls forced 35 turnovers and made 19 steals, and handed out 32 assists on 40 buckets. Westfield got 58 points from "the bench" in the platoon system.
Plymouth was led by 20 points from Cassidy Emerson (Concord, N.H.), and got 13 points and 10 rebounds from Elizabeth McLaughlin (Kingswood Reg./Melvin Village, N.H.). Jess Conant (Dirigo/Canton, Maine) added 18 points, but the Panthers were hampered by early foul trouble on 5-10 shooter Brittany Roche (Londonderry, N.H.), who picked up two early fouls and a third early in the third quarter and was limited to 20 minutes of play. The Panthers connected on 16 of 29 shots (55 percent) in the opening half, but shot just 10-33 in the second half.
Westfield State improves to 4-1 on the season with the win. The Owls cracked the 100 point mark for the third time this season. The Owls will play at the Courtyard by Marriott Tournament at Wesleyan this weekend, facing the University of Valley Forge at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday.
Plymouth drops to 2-3 overall and will next host UMass Dartmouth on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. in a Little East Conference match up.