Western New England stops Salve Regina, 64-49

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (February 20, 2018) – Fourth-seeded Western New England University outscored fifth-seeded Salve Regina University by a combined 20 points in the second and third quarters on its way to a 64-49 victory over the Seahawks in the quarterfinal round of the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Women's Basketball Tournament on Tuesday night at the Alumni Healthful Living Center. 

With the win, Western New England (17-9) advances to Thursday's CCC semifinal round, where the Golden Bears will meet top-seeded University of New England in Biddeford, Maine. Salve Regina's season comes to a close at 13-12.

Top Performers
• Sophomore forward Meghan Orbann (East Hampton, Conn.) turned in a strong all-around effort with nine points, ten rebounds, six steals and two assists.
• Sophomore forward Courtney Carlson (Woodbury, Conn.) posted her second career double-double with 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting and a career-high matching 12 rebounds (seven offensive).
• Senior guard Dorothy O'Neill (Staten Island, N.Y.) and junior guard Meghan Gilhool (Montrose, Pa.) contributed 12 points each for the Golden Bears.

• Salve Regina was led by sophomore guard Torie Scorpio (Cranston, R.I.), who scored a team-high 13 points to go with four assists, two steals and two rebounds.
• Junior guard Kerri Beland (Attleboro, Mass.) finished with 11 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Game Review
Salve Regina, which was held scoreless over the first four minutes of the contest, took a 9-8 lead on a jumper by Beland with 4:12 remaining in the opening frame.

Western New England pulled back ahead on a layup by sophomore Emily Farrell (New Fairfield, Conn.) at the 3:20 mark, and the Golden Bears were able to stretch their advantage to five (16-11) by the end of the quarter with the help of two O'Neill three-pointers.

Still leading by five (22-17) early in the second period, the Golden Bears used a pair of Farrell free throws and a triple from junior Caroline Niland (Waltham, Mass.) to establish their first double-digit cushion (27-17) with 6:31 left in the half.

A 9-0 Western New England run later in the frame allowed the Golden Bears to push their lead to 17 (36-19), before a Scorpio layup in the closing seconds made it a 15-point game at the break.

Western New England was able to break the contest open in the third quarter, as the Golden Bears shot 58.8 percent (10-of-17) from the field and outscored Salve Regina 24-14. Gilhool caught fire early in the period with ten points, including a pair of triples, over the first three and a half minutes of the frame.

Western New England's advantage grew to 29 points (55-26) after O'Neill drained a three-pointer at the 5:16 mark, and the home team held a comfortable 60-35 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

The Seahawks fought their way back into the game in the final period, but their deficit proved to be too much to overcome as Western New England secured a 15-point triumph.

Notes
• The Golden Bears have reached the CCC semifinals in four consecutive seasons.
• Western New England outrebounded Salve Regina 44-31, led by Carlson and Orbann, who combined for 22 boards.
• The Golden Bears limited the Seahawks to 16.7 percent shooting (2-of-12) from three-point range.