Worcester State Women Fall To Bears, 69-60

 (Courtesy of Bridgewater Sate Sports Information)

BRIDGEWATER, MA – In MASCAC women’s basketball action this evening from the Tinsley Center, the Bridgewater State College Bears notched their fourth straight conference win, as the Bears remained undefeated in MASCAC play with a 69-60 victory over Worcester State College.

With the win BSC improves to 9-7 overall and 4-0 in the MASCAC.  Worcester falls to 9-8 and 2-3 in conference play. Bridgewater has now won five of the last seven meetings between the two teams.

The first half saw a nip and tuck game as Bridgewater and Worcester traded baskets. The game was tight at halftime with a score of 28-27 in favor of BSC.

The second half picked up where the first left off, but the Bears were able to pick up some momentum and establish a marginal lead midway through.  Up 38-36, BSC went on a 7-2 run to jump ahead, 45-38.  The Lancers answered with four straight points to cut the deficit to 45-22.  Bridgewater then took control of the game for good as the Bears went on a 13-5 run to pull ahead, 58-47, with just under five minutes remaining.

Leading the charge for the Bears was junior forward Colleen Feeney (Providence, RI) who posted a double-double for the fourth time in the last five games. Feeney, who registered game-highs of 24 points and 16 rebounds to go along with 3 blocks, scored 19 of her 24 points in the second half, while shooting 6-for-7 from the floor and 7-7 from the line in the second stanza. Junior guard Caitlin Feeney (Providence, RI) also registered a double-double as she collected 11 boards and scored 14 points in a game-high 38 minutes. Caitlin also added 6 assists and 6 steals.

BSC held Worcester to 30% (24-for-79) shooting from the floor, and just 20% (4-for-20) from beyond the arc. The Bears, on the other hand, shot 46% (26-for-57) from the field, and connected on more free throws (15) than the Lancers attempted (11).

Also helping to spark the Bears to a victory was junior guard Melissa Murphy (Rockland, MA) who, at one point, scored 8 straight points in the second half, and finished with totals of 13 points, 4 assists, and a steal. Senior forward Catie Furtado (Taunton, MA) also chipped in with 12 points and 7 rebounds.

Worcester was led by junior forward Maureen Lemay (Nashua, NH) who scored 16 points and collected 9 boards to go along with 3 assists and 2 steals in 33 minutes.

The MASCAC schedule resumes for the BSC on Thursday night as the Bears head to Salem State College for a key conference matchup with the Lady Vikings. Tip-off is slated for 6 PM. Worcester is off until Saturday afternoon when they play host to Salem State at 2.

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