Seahawks subdue Lyons, 81-58

(Courtesy of Wheaton Athletic Communications)

NORTON, Mass. (January 31, 2024) – Senior forward Briana Neary (Wayne, N.J.) (21 points/four rebounds) and younger sister Sofia Neary (Wayne, N.J.) (14/16) combined to score 35 points and grab 20 rebounds to lead the Salve Regina University women's basketball team to an 81-58 victory over host Wheaton College (Mass.) this evening in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play at Emerson Gymnasium on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.

The Seahawks improve to 10-10 overall and 4-2 in league play, while the Lyons fall to 9-11 and 1-5.

Wheaton cut its deficit to just six points after three quarters of play, but Salve Regina missed just three shots in the fourth quarter (10-13) to shoot a torrid 76.9% and outscored the host Lyons, 26-9, in the final period to take home the win. The Seahawks shot 48.4% (31-64) for the game, while holding Wheaton to 40% (24-60), including 3-11 (27.3%) in the fateful fourth quarter. Salve Regina committed just 10 turnovers, while forcing the Lyons into 16 miscues to translate to a 16-7 points off turnovers advantage for the game.

Briana Neary handed out three assists and came up with a pair of steals for the Seahawks, while Sofia Neary posted her ninth double-double and established a career-high for rebounds in addition to doling out three assists and making a pair of steals. Junior forward Ashley Rourke (Londonderry, N.H.) netted 15 points, including a trio of three-pointers to go with four rebounds, two assists and two steals, while graduate student guard Morgan Shuey (Corning, Iowa) scored nine of her 13 points in the fourth quarter and was 6-9 from the field in addition to five rebounds, three assists and three steals. Salve Regina's starting five accounted for all but seven of their points (74).

Junior guard Abby Fernandes (Assonet, Mass.) scored 15 points and handed out six assists to go with four rebounds and a steal for Wheaton, while sophomore forward Regan Keyter (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) registered her second double-double of the year with 14 points and 10 rebounds in addition to a steal. Senior forward Maddie Mueller (Carver, Mass.) came off the bench to convert four of five from the field, including a big three-pointer as part of an 11-point effort and added three rebounds and an assist in just 13 minutes of action.

Fernandes knocked down a pair of free throws to pull the Lyons within 60-53 with 8:42 showing on the fourth quarter clock, but the Seahawks ripped off nine straight points to ignite a 21-5 stretch to close out the game for the win. Shuey scored nine points during the run for Salve Regina.

Keyter scored the first five points of the night and senior forward Emma Kiernan (Wayland, Mass.) scored the final five points of a 12-6, five-minute stretch to open the game for Wheaton.

The Seahawks defense clamped down, holding the Lyons to just two free throws for the remainder of the quarter. Sophomore guard Marissa Forino (Watertown, Mass.) and Sofia Neary each netted four points during a 14-2 blitz to close the quarter and give the visitors a 20-14 lead before the horn sounded to end the opening period of play.

Fernandes knocked down the first shot of the second quarter just eight seconds in to cut the margin to 20-16 for Wheaton, before Salve Regina responded with a 13-2 stretch, paced by six points from Briana Neary, to give the Seahawks a 33-18 advantage with 5:33 left in the quarter. Salve Regina outscored the Lyons, 27-4, in a span of 9:42 from the last five minutes of the first quarter and the first five minutes of the second.

Wheaton took a page out of the Seahawks book and held them to just two points over the final five and a half minutes of the quarter, while Keyter (five) and Fernandes (four) combined to outscore their guests, 9-2, to cut the halftime margin to 35-27.

Salve Regina scored the first six points of the third quarter, including four from Briana Neary, to increase its lead to 41-27 with 8:40 to go in the period and later maintained a 50-37 cushion following a three-pointer from senior guard Amanda Folan (North Attleboro, Mass.) with 5:23 to play in the quarter. Mueller buried her only three-pointer of the season on a high-arcing rainbow shot to cap a 10-3 run and cut the deficit to 53-47 for the home team. Mueller made a nifty spin move to convert a layup with 12 ticks left in the quarter to keep the margin at six (55-49) for the Lyons before the buzzer sounded to end the quarter.

Wheaton looked primed to continue its comeback bid following Fernandes' free throws with 8:42 remaining in the game, but the Seahawks caught fire and the Lyons went cold for the rest of the contest.

Both teams return for conference action on Saturday, February 3 at 1:00 p.m. Salve Regina heads to Wellesley, Mass. to take on Wellesley College, while Wheaton hosts Babson College at Emerson Gymnasium. Briana Neary nears the 1,000-point career plateau with 993 points in 70 games.