By Alex Solari, Staff Writer
On Wednesday, the women’s basketball team defeated Rhode Island College with a score of 69-47. In the first quarter, the Corsairs struggled, going just 6-of-18 or 33 percent from the field.
Alicia Kutil of Franklin, Mass., made the first basket of the second quarter and was able to gain a one-point lead. Then RIC’s Victoria Demers of Sutton, Mass., made a 3-pointer, which put her team back in the lead, and RIC’s Jessa Rubera of Newton, Mass., extended the lead with a long- distance shot, which gave the Anchorwomen a three-point lead.
Kutil then delivered the first four points of the second quarter, and the Corsairs had a smooth ride until the end of the game.
RIC’s Jordan Gauvin of Fall River, Mass., shortly knotted the score at 20, but Corsair junior Chelsea Houlihan of Wolcott, Conn., made a 3-pointer and 2 foul shots within 30 seconds. The Corsairs had a 7-point lead just before Nakira Examond of New Bedford, Mass., capped a 5-0 streak with two free throws.
UMass Dartmouth made it impossible for the Anchorwomen to catch up. Four minutes passed without a basket from the Anchorwomen, and UMass Dartmouth took advantage of this with a 12-0 run and a 19-point advantage.
For the remainder of the game, the Corsairs kept a 15-plus point lead, burgeoned by a 21-9 scoring advantage in the third quarter and 19 points in the second half from senior Rachel McCarron of Groton, Mass.
At the Tripp Athletic Center on Saturday, where the Eastern Connecticut warriors had 11 of its 17 tries from 3-point range. This ended the Corsairs’ eight-game win streak on Senior Day with an 80-62 defeat.
Defense from the Corsairs gave the hosts a slight advantage in the first quarter. Halfway into the quarter, McCarron drew the score even at eight, which sparked a 6-0 streak from the Corsairs.
The Corsairs forced seven Warrior turnovers in the first 10 minutes, but five straight points from Jordyn Nappi of Southington, Conn., which included a 3-pointer knotted the margin at 18.
The Warriors started to dominate in the second quarter, overtaking the lead from the first basket. Senior Julia DePoi of Brookfield, Conn., and freshman Sabrina LeMere of North Branford, Conn., sunk back-to-back long-range baskets.
Three minutes passed without a basket from the Corsairs, which put the Warriors up by seven. Two foul shots from Lexis Foster of Groton, Conn., extended the margin to 10 with 1:45 left. Nappi registered from 3-point land in the final minute, and the Warriors went into halftime with a lead of 39-30.
Houlihan scored eight points in the third quarter, but this wasn’t enough to keep the Corsairs afloat.
ECSU’s first-year Mya Villard of Cromwell, Conn., gave the Warriors a double-digit advantage for good.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Corsairs edged back up within 10 points, but the Warriors changed that with 13 of 14 free throw chances in the final four and a half minutes of play while the Corsairs struggled from long range.
Next up, the Women’s Basketball team will be home against UMass Boston on Wednesday, February 15th, and are travelling to face University of Southern Maine on Saturday, February 18.