Harden sets Rodgers record in win for Seahawks

NEWPORT, R.I. - Salve Regina University junior guard Meaghan Harden (Sandwich, Mass.) scored 37 points to set the single-game record for the Rodgers Recreation Center and lead the host Seahawks to a 77-67 victory over Endicott College in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) women's basketball action on Tuesday evening.

On November 22, 2014, the junior guard scored a record 36 points in a seven-point home win against Middlebury College. She is the only player (male or female) to score over 35 points on the Rodgers hardwood since it opened in 2000; and now she's done it twice this season.

The Seahawks (6-5; 3-1 CCC) scored the first eight points of the game, all from inside, as Laura Anne Dinan (Monterey, Mass.) and Jillian Woodward (Orono, Maine) had back-to-back layups. Harden added two more layups for the early lead.

The Gulls (5-6; 1-3 CCC) responded with a 13-3 run to take their first lead at 13:30. Junior guard Nicole Catizone (Woburn, Mass.) had four baskets, including a 3-pointer, during the run while classmate Kelsey Cuddy (Madison, Conn.) scored her first points with a layup and two free throws.

A 12-0 run for Salve Regina gave the hosts their first double-digit lead of the contest. Senior Brianna Del Valle (Belchertown, Mass.), playing in her first home game of the season, had a free throw and two layups during this run. Harden had the other seven points.

A Harden layup late in the first half gave Salve Regina its largest lead (37-23), but the Gulls closed the period with a 3-pointer from freshman Hannah Kiernan (Wenham, Mass.) and a layup from freshman Gabriella Coppola (Watertown, Mass.). Those five points combined with the 12-2 run the Gulls enjoyed opening the second half gave Endicott a one-point lead (40-39) following a Catizone 3-pointer at 15:57.

Del Valle's successful free throws put the Seahawks back on top and ignited a 15-3 run for Salve Regina. Freshman Mary Eden (So. Kingstown, R.I.) made her only 3-pointer of the game during the nearly four-minute stretch.

Trailing by 11 following a Dinan layup at 11:58 (54-43), the Gulls closed within four with 3-pointers from Cuddy and Kayleen Whall (Foxboro, Mass.). Whall also made three free-throws during the span.

Woodward had two good moves in the paint to sink a pair of layups. The sophomore forward finished with her first career double-double and career highs for both points (17) and rebounds (12). Salve Regina scored its final six points from the free throw line.

Cuddy led the visitors with her 20-point, seven-rebound effort while Catizone finished with 14 points and Whall tallied 11 points.

Salve Regina, which was swept by Endicott in the season series last year, improves to 15-9 all-time against the Gulls. The Seahawks travel to University of New England on Thursday for a match with the two-time defending champions. Endicott hosts Roger Williams on Thursday in Beverly, Mass.