Lancers Spread it Around with 29 Assists in Win

WORCESTER, Mass. – The Lancers dished out a season-high 29 assists and saw three players score 20+ points as Worcester State University defeated Salem State 83-68 in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) women's basketball action on Monday evening at Brissette '88 Competition Court.

Elizabeth Gallella (Tewksbury, Mass.) had a game-high 9 assists, while Gigi LeMay (Grafton, Mass.) filled the stat sheet with a team-high 22 points, nine rebounds, six assists, five steals and two blocks for Worcester State (8-7, 3-1 MASCAC), who has now won three in a row.

Liz Zaiter (Peabody, Mass.) had a game-high 27 points and 12 rebounds for Salem State, who drop to 3-12 overall and 1-3 in the conference.

The teams played to a three-point difference in the opening period, but with the game tied at 27 with 7:00 to play in the half, Nyah Thomas (Attleboro, Mass.) and the Lancers took over.

They ended the half on an 18-5 run, with Thomas scoring 10 of her 21 points in the second quarter. Thomas had 14 points on 7-10 shooting at halftime, and finished the night with four assists, a steal, a block and five rebounds.

Zaiter scored 12 points in the first half. The Vikings shot 57% from the floor in the first quarter, while Worcester was above 50% for the entire first half. They emerged from halftime with a 13-pont lead, and held on for the 11-point win, shooting exactly 50% from the field.

Sarah Blomgren (Lunenburg, Mass.) scored 20 points, shooting 9-12 off the bench for Worcester. She was 5-6 from the field in the second half.  

Salem struggled from the floor after their hot start, particularly in the third quarter, where they went 5-21 (23.8%) and 0-5 from three-point land. They settled for a 36.4% final shooting mark.

Kylie Gates (Pembroke, Mass.) and Gabby Torres (Peabody, Mass.) were both in double-figures for the Vikings. Gates had 13 points and 9 rebounds, while Torres scored 10 points and had three assists and three steals.

Erin Gallella (Tewksbury, Mass.) joined in the assist party with six helpers, to go with two steals and a block. Abby St. Martin (Putnam, Conn.) had seven rebounds, two assists and three steals in the win.

Worcester is on the road again Wednesday evening when they head to Framingham State for a 5:30 PM MASCAC clash.

Salem's next game is this Saturday when Worcester heads to the Vikings for the second half of their conference series at 12:00 noon.