Lancers Toppled by Owls in Second Half Battle

Worcester, MA- After a full participation team outing on Wednesday to open their MASCAC conference season at home, the Worcester State Women's Basketball team (4-7, 1-0) now opened their road conference schedule with a trip to Westfield State.

Final

Worcester State: 67

Westfield State: 78

How it Happened:

The opening road action in conference for the Lancers was a back and forth battle that was started with a quick layup from junior Alana Smith (Chicopee, MA) and a steal from first year Derin Tokan (Istanbul, TR) would find Worcester up 4-0 early. The Owls and Lancers would trade points with a senior Hannah Lomonaco (Northbridge, MA) pushing the lead to five points. Late in the quarter Westfield would claim a single point lead which was swiftly reclaimed in Worcester's favor on a junior Lena Waldron (Quincy, MA) layup. Lead changes would bounce back and forth before a late run saw the first quarter end 24-20 in Westfield's favor.

Smith would again open the action in the second as Worcester continued to keep pace with the Owls. Lomonaco would reclaim the lead for the Lancers just over three minutes in with Waldron adding an additional cushion. The back end of the second quarter would find Westfield again finding the tie with the score set at 35-35. A Smith layup and one would give the Lancers a slight cushion that Westfield would cut to one with just over a minute to go. The Owls would take the single point lead but Smith would hold the half for Worcester for a 40-39 halftime set.

Westfield would start on a roll in the third, pushing their lead to 10 with five minutes down while Worcester reassessed their defensive plan to slow down the quick cycle Owls substitution plan. The shooting difficulties would hamper the Lancers bid to cut into the lead but the staunch defense would slow the growth of the Westfield success. At the conclusion of the third the score would sit at 61-50 towards the Owls.

The final quarter kept the status quo with Worcester working to chip away, but the Owls managed to hold off the push. They capitalized on success from the three point range to hold off Worcester's gain from the free throw line, shooting at 71%, with each team being even from field goal range for the 78-67.

Smith would lead the Lancers with 21 points and 19 rebounds for a stellar double double on the day. 

What's Next:

The Lancers (4-8, 1-1) will return home for their next game as they host their 16th annual Math Madness on Monday January 12th at noon. The game will see 500+ local elementary school students watch a fun and active game while working to solve math problems during the event and halftime.