WENHAM, Mass.—Visiting Western New England broke open a tight contest in the second half, outscoring Gordon 25-9 in the period to secure an 88-55 victory at the Bennett Athletic Center on Saturday. Rookie Meghan Foley's (Malden, Mass.) 17 points off the bench was not enough to combat the Golden Bears' powerful offense.
Western New England polishes its record up to 8-2 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference and 12-4 overall on the season. Gordon dips to 4-6 in the conference and 6-11 this year.
The Golden Bears led nearly the entire contest other than Gordon taking a 2-0 lead on the game's first possession. Still, Gordon kept things close in the first quarter against their opponents, who came into the game with the second best record in the league. WNE's Emily Anderson (Rocky Hill, Conn.) was a handful in the opening period, hitting a slew of shots from different spots to make a 5-5 game into a 15-5 lead for the visitors. Down 19-9, the Fighting Scots scored the final seven points of the quarter, including a last-second three by Brooke Dyson (Houston, Texas) to close the gap entering the second.
Gordon continued its run into the second quarter to cut the deficit to one point, but Western New England quickly turned things back the other way and held a 40-31 lead at halftime.
Things only got better for the Golden Bears to begin the second half, as Sammi Battaini (Leominster, Mass.) and Anderson combined to hit three consecutive deep balls to double the lead in a heartbeat. Western New England stayed just as hot for the rest of the quarter, putting Gordon in a 65-40 hole before the final 10 minutes.
Western New England put up 23 more points in the fourth quarter to close Gordon out.
The Golden Bears mimicked their first game with the Scots by showcasing a spread attack. Four of WNE's five starters were above 10 points for the game, including a game-high 17 for Anderson. Paige Young (Berlin, Conn.) had a quietly solid night with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while dishing out a team-high five assists. Dorothy O'Neill (Staten Island, N.Y.) had 13 points, while Battaini chipped in 11.
Western New England outrebounded the Scots 42-31, but it was 18 offensive rebounds that allowed the Golden Bears to pull away in the second half.
Foley had one of her best games of the New Year with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting, while also setting up four other makes. Dyson was the only Gordon starter in double figures with 11 at a 50 percent clip.
Gordon will look to complete a season sweep of Eastern Nazarene on Wednesday in Quincy at 5 p.m.
