Women’s Basketball First MASCAC Win Comes on Heels of Big Second Half Comeback

Worcester, MA- Looking for their first conference win and their first win of the new year, the Worcester State women's basketball team hosted the Westfield State University Owls this afternoon. It would take a wild comeback in a high-scoring, turnover-heavy contest to get the job done. 

The Owls came into the showdown with a non-traditional personnel strategy, making full-line changes nearly every minute. Though the Lancers only trailed by two after the first quarter, an aggressive and constant Westfield State full-court press contributed to a largely Owl-controlled first half. By the time the teams headed to their locker rooms for the halftime break, Worcester State trailed by a score of 40-28. 

Though on their heels in the first half, the Lancers came into the third quarter with a head of steam, pulling even with the Owls in less than four minutes. The teams swapped leads for the rest of the quarter. With ten minutes left, the Owls led 54-52. 

The Lancers were able to complete the impressive comeback in the fourth quarter, finally pulling away from the Owls with two minutes and twenty-one seconds remaining. They led 68-62 at that time, and an ability to hit the free throws that came via intentional fouls down the stretch cemented the victory. When all was said and done, Worcester State University was on top, 75-69. 

Graduate student Sarah Blomgren (Lunenburg, Mass.) led the Lancers with 18 points, and the twin pairing of Elizabeth and Erin Galella each put up double-digits. Senior Madison Gutierrez (Holyoke, Mass.) had a monster game, coming off the bench to play nearly 20 impactful minutes, contributing ten points including a massive momentum-shifting fast break layup. 

The Lancers now stand at 1-2 in the MASCAC, and 5-11 overall. The Owls head back out west now 9-8 overall, and 2-2 in the conference. Worcester State will be back on the hardwood Wednesday night at 7 p.m. at Fitchburg State University.