Bantams defeat Seahawks, 66-53

Hartford, Conn. - Four Bantams finished with double-digit scoring efforts as the Trinity College women's basketball team defeated the Salve Regina Seahawks, 66-53, on Thursday night in Oosting Gymnasium in Hartford. Trinity held the Seahawks to just 32.1 percent shooting from the floor, including a 5-for-26 first half, as they shot just under 50 percent on the evening en route to the 13-point victory. The win is Trinity's sixth in a row after dropping its season-opener, improving them to 6-1 overall while Salve Regina falls to 1-7 with the setback.

Junior Aubree Udell (Chester, N.J.) paced Trinity early, leading the team with five points after the first quarter. Udell finished with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting, including a team-best 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. Also with 10 points was sophomore Erin Cunningham (Wilton, Conn.) who tallied six points in a second quarter that Trinity outscored the Seahawks by a 23-9 margin. Sophomore Becky Reifler (Garden City, N.Y.) and junior Emily Llerena (New Milford, Conn.) combined for 22 points as each scored 11, with Reifler adding a team-high three steals as well. Sophomore Courtney Erickson recorded a game-high ten boards and also chipped in seven points as well.

For Salve Regina, first-year Torie Scorpio (Cranston, R.I.) and sophomore Kerri Beland (Attleboro, Mass.) combined for 33 of the Seahawks 53 total points. Beland led the way with a game-high 18 points while Scorpio dropped 15 to go along with six rebounds, four steals and three assists.

The Bantams jumped out to an early 13-6 lead on a layup by Llerena in the first quarter, but Salve Regina came charging back, ending the first frame on a 5-0 run capped off by a layup by Scorpio to beat the buzzer. The second quarter was a different story as Trinity came out of the gates with a 16-2 run to open up a 32-13 lead with just over three minutes left to go in the half. A three-pointer by Scorpio cut the deficit to just 14 but back-to-back buckets by Cunningham right before the half gave the hosts a comfortable, 16-point lead entering the break.

The Seahawks were unable to chip away at Trinity's lead in the third quarter as the Bantams held a 16-point lead entering the final quarter of play. Despite five points each by Samantha Gisonni (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) and Allyson Esielionis (Shirley, Mass.) in the fourth, The Bantams kept the Seahawks at arms-length and cruised to the 13-point victory.