Salve Regina wins wire-to-wire against Western New England

NEWPORT, R.I. - Salve Regina University senior Marissa Pendergast (Medfield, Mass.) posted her team-leading seventh double-double (10 points, 15 rebounds) to lead the Seahawks to a 49-34 win over visiting Western New England University in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) women's basketball action at the Rodgers Recreation Center.

The Seahawks improve to .500 overall (8-8) and 6-3 in the league while the Golden Bears fall below .500 (7-8) and slip to 4-5 in conference play.

Salve Regina has outscored Western New England, 193-130, in the last three meetings in Newport.

The Seahawks held the visitors to 14 first-half points, the lowest opponent total in any half this season, as Salve Regina went into intermission with a 12-point lead, 26-14.

Western New England made one of 16 3-point attempts, and its 15 misfires from behind the arc matches the most misses by a Seahawk opponent this season from 3-point range (Westfield State; Nov. 23). Salve Regina matched its best 3-point field goal percentage of the season (.444) while making four of nine from deep range (eight of 18 in loss at UMass Dartmouth; Nov. 26).

Meaghan Harden (Sandwich, Mass.) scored eight points in the first half including two 3-pointers. She finished with a game-high 13 points and added seven rebounds. Salve Regina led the entire game, scoring the first eight points, as Madelyn Brackett (Coopersville, Mich.) started the scoring with a lay-up and free throw. In the second half, Brackett had a reverse lay-in at 9:02 that started a 12-3 run for the Seahawks who had their largest lead (21 points) when Kelsey Kennedy (Medford, N.J.) drained a 3-pointer at 2:09 (49-28).

Laura Anne Dinan (Monterey, Mass.) dished out four assists while Harden and Brackett, both sophomores, added two assists apiece. It was the 33rd time in 32 years that Salve Regina women's basketball had held an opponent to 34 points or fewer.

Both teams shot well from the free-throw line, WNE made nine of 12 and SRU made 11 of 14. Western New England got a 10-rebound effort from reserve guard Katie Eckert (Lee, Mass.). Despite four personal fouls, Samantha McCann (Warren, Mass.) logged the most minutes for the Golden Bears (26) and scored nine points.

Both teams host the schools currently tied for first in the CCC. Salve Regina entertains Roger Williams on Saturday during Alumni Hoopsfest 2014 on the Seahawk campus. Western New England hosts University of New England on the same day.