WORCESTER -- Allison Fullem (Underhill, VT) and Emmy Allyn (Rutland, MA) notched 17 points apiece to lead WPI women's basketball to a 57-39 defeat over Curry in a non-conference matchup on Saturday afternoon inside Harrington Auditorium.
The Engineers lift their overall record to 4-1 while the Colonels fall to 2-3 on the season.
The WPI defense held off the Colonels from denting the scoring column on their first five field goal attempts, setting the stage for a defensive-heavy game. Allyn accounted for six of the hosts points to end the quarter, while Shannon Reno (Millbury, MA) grabbed four boards. Megan Stone (Hanson, MA) came up clutch by blocking Samantha Conti's (Woodbury, CT) final shot of the quarter, securing an 8-6 lead for the Engineers as they headed into the second stanza.
To begin the second quarter, Caitlyn Dasaro (Fairfield, VT) hit back-to-back pull up shots to give the Crimson and Gray a six-point lead with 8:59 to go before intermission. WPI's Fullem ignited a scoring surge, sinking a layup with 6:12 left on the clock and following it up with four quick buckets in the paint over a dominant two-minute stretch. Going into halftime, the Engineers lead 32-12. For the hosts, Fullem recorded 11 points, six rebounds and one block, while Dasaro added 10 points and five boards. For Curry, Lauren Dunn (Hanson, MA) accumulated seven points and three boards over the half, and Brooke Kershow (Eatons Neck, NY) added three points and one rebound.
Coming out of the locker room, WPI added on five more points to its score, but then Curry notched back-to-back shots, with a layup by Grace Fleuriel (Winthrop, MA) and a jumper by Kershow to bring the score to 37-16 with 7:45 to play in the quarter. Allyn then added two buckets for the Engineers to bring her total on the game to double digits with 10. To close out the stanza, the Boynton Hillers held a 23 point lead, as both defenses dug in to keep the scoring in check.
To begin the last 10 minutes of play, the Colonels held off a WPI field goal on four attempts, but then Allyn knocked in a jumper with 7:13 left, and then hit a trey on the next possession. Curry's Dunn made the first attempt of the quarter with a made shot from behind the arc and added onto her total points with another trey just a minute later and a driving layup, bringing the score to 50-30. Allyn took initiative and hit a three-pointer on the next WPI possession. Dunn made another run for the visitors, completing a driving layup and three pointer one minute apart.
On the afternoon, WPI made 36.7% (22-60) of field goals and accumulated 22 bench points and 18 points off turnovers. Curry was held to only 29.4% (15-51) shooting from the floor on the game and 16 points in the paint. Allyn and Fullem led the Engineers with 17 points apiece. Fullem, whose point total was a new career-best, was just shy of a double-double with a career-high nine boards and added three blocks and a steal. Dasaro finished with 12 points to go along with six rebounds and Reno paced all players with three assists on the day.
Dunn scored a game-high 24 points and added on two steals, while Kershow amassed seven points and three rebounds, and Kasey Reeves (Millbury, MA) gobbled up a team-best seven boards for the Colonels.
Both teams take a break for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday week. WPI hits the road for a matchup at Bridgewater State on Tuesday December 3rd at 7pm. Curry hosts New England College for a 5pm contest on Monday December 2nd.