Seahawks have no answers for Golden Bears 3-point shooting

NEWPORT, R.I. - Western New England University women's basketball felt right at home in the Rodgers Recreation Center by shooting 10-of-21 from behind the arc while defeating hosts Salve Regina University, 64-48, in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action.

The league's leading scorer - Salve Regina's Meaghan Harden (Sandwich, Mass.) - led all players with 15 points, including three of five long range, but the visitors had four players in double figure scoring. Western New England (15-9, 10-7 CCC) grabs sole possession of fourth place in the league with one game remaining (at Endicott on Saturday), while Salve Regina (12-12, 9-8 CCC) slips to sixth place with its final game at third-place Curry this weekend.

Junior guard Chelsea Vujs (Berlin, Conn.), the league's leading rebounder and the only player averaging a double-double in the CCC, filled the stat sheet with 11 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, and four steals.

The Golden Bears got their 3-point shooting spree started on their first possession after a Vujs' steal led to a long range shot from sophomore Emily Anderson (Rocky Hill, Conn.). Senior Samantha McCann (Warren, Mass.) had a layup before Salve Regina got on the board with Laura Anne Dinan's (Monterey, Mass.) baseline jumper.

Harden hit consecutive threes to give the Seahawks their only lead of the game, 8-7, at 17:23. Freshman Dorothy O'Neill (Staten Island, N.Y.) swished her first of three first-half 3-pointers to regain the advantage for Western New England, before Allyson Esielionis (Shirley, Mass.) tied the game at 10-10 on her jumper.

The visitors doubled the Seahawk output the remainder of the half (28-14) to take a 14-point lead into the break. Salve Regina allowed its most first-half points (38) of the season at home. Western New England had made eight of 10 from 3-point range.

The Seahawks scored six of the first eight points in the second half, including a layup from senior Brianna Del Valle (Belchertown, Mass.), but a 12-2 run for the Golden Bears produced the largest gap of the game (52-32). Anderson and Samantha Battaini (Leominster, Mass.) hit from deep during the run.

Western New England maintained a double-digit cushion the rest of the way. O'Neill led the visitors with 14 points while McCann and Anderson both chipped in 13 for Western New England.

Salve Regina sophomore Jillian Woodward (Orono, Maine) gave the offense a spark off the bench with 11 points. The Seahawks won the battle of the boards, 39-36, and outscored the Golden Bears in the paint, 18-16.

The Seahawks and Golden Bears split their season series, both winning on the other's court, and Western New England holds an advantage in a tiebreaker scenario with its win over current second-place Roger Williams in December.