Women’s Basketball Picks Up First Conference Win with 70-58 Victory of MCLA
Framingham, Mass. – Behind a career and season-high 32 points and 11 rebounds from junior guard Madeleine Park (Blue Hill, ME), the Framingham State University women's basketball team picked up their first conference win with a 70-58 triumph over MCLA in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) women's basketball action tonight at Framingham's Athletic Center.
With the win, the Rams improve to 9-7 on the season and 1-4 in the conference, while the loss drops the Trailblazers to 8-8 overall and evens their record in the MASCAC at 2-2.
With the game tied at 17-17 midway through the first half, the Trailblazers used an 8-0 run with all eight points coming from senior forward Jen Wehner (Cooperstown, NY) including a pull up three off the dribble at the top of the key to take the largest lead of the half at 25-17 with 7:31 remaining.
The Rams answered with a 9-0 run of their own over the next two minutes to take a 26-25 lead. Park and sophomore guard Kristen Hoffman (Foxboro, Mass.) capped the run for the hosts with back-to-back threes.
The two teams traded the lead over the final five minutes before a Hoffman three point play with 5.3 seconds left in the half gave the Rams a 36-34 edge at the break. Park led all scorers with 19 first half points including 4-of-4 from behind the arc, while Wehner led the Trailblazers with 16.
The Rams pushed the lead to eight in the opening minutes of the second half, but the Trailblazers used buckets from sophomore guard Kaitlyn Chenevert (Uxbridge, Mass.) and Wehner to cut the deficit to four, 44-40, with 15:20 left in the game.
Framingham State responded with a decisive 10-0 run to take control of the game for good. During the spurt the Rams received four points from Park and Hoffman capped the run with back-to-back steals and fast break lay-ins to push the lead to 54-40 with 11:40 on the clock.
The Trailblazers chipped away and pulled within four at 59-55 with 4:40 left as freshman guard Alyson Stolz (Oxford, Mass.) provided a spark off the bench with eight points. That was as close as the Trailblazers would get as the Rams hit 11-of-12 free throws in the final 3:39 to seal the victory.
Park picked up her first double double as a Ram with her game-high 32 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the floor including 4-of-6 from behind the arc to go along with 11 rebounds, three assists and two steals. Hoffman was the only other Ram to record double figures with 16 points including 7-of-7 from the free throw line. Hoffman picked up a game-high five steals and five caroms, while freshman guard Nicole Bostic (North Easton, Mass.) added nine points, five rebounds and three steals.
Wehner led the Trailblazers with 20 points and a game-high 21 rebounds leading MCLA to a 53-35 advantage on the glass in the game including a 27-12 edge on the offensive end. Wehner had a huge game on the defensive end of the floor with six blocks. Senior guard Alie Dobrovolc (Little Falls, NY) also recorded a double double with 12 points and 11 rebounds and filled the stat sheet with a game-high seven assists and four steals.
The Rams return to action on Saturday afternoon when they host Westfield State University at 1 p.m., while the Trailblazers host Fitchburg State University on Saturday at 1 p.m.