Women's Basketball Surges Past Bridgewater State 59-42

Bridgewater, Mass. – The visiting Framingham State University women's basketball team posted a 59-42 win over Bridgewater State University in Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action on Saturday afternoon at the Tinsley Center.

The Rams, who last defeated the Bears in Bridgewater during the 2002-2003 season, improve to 9-4 on the season and 2-0 in the MASCAC, while the Bears slip to 3-9 overall and 0-1 in MASCAC play.

Sophomore guards Raegan Mulherin (Baldwinville, Mass.) and Lauren Donahue (Attleboro, Mass.) paced Framingham State with 13 points apiece. Mulherin added seven rebounds, two assists and a pair of steals, while Donahue tallied four boards and five assists. Junior center Alycia Rackliffe (Feeding Hills, Mass.) came within a point and two blocked shots of a triple-double as she finished with nine points, 18 rebounds and eight blocks.  Junior Monta Connolly (Lynn, Mass.) chipped in with 10 points, five rebounds and four steals, while freshman Tiphani Harris (Revere, Mass.) added seven points and seven boards.

Freshman guard Sara DiSilva (Chelmsford, Mass.) led Bridgewater State with 13 points, four rebounds and five steals. Junior forward Jennie Lindland (Edgartown, Mass.) chipped in 11 points and six boards.

Framingham used a 13-0 run in the first quarter fueled by four points apiece from Donahue and Harris to take a 15-4 lead as the Rams held the Bears scoreless for over seven minutes. The visitors led 17-7 at the end of one and extended their advantage to 29-13 at the break thanks in large part to their defense that held the Bears to just 18% shooting from the field and received five blocks from Rackliffe.

The Rams opened the third quarter with an 8-2 spurt capped by a Connolly bucket in the paint to take their biggest lead of the game (37-15) with 6:40 remaining in the session. Sparked by seven points from DaSilva, the Bears answered with a 12-2 run to cut the deficit to 39-27 with 3:40 showing on the clock. Later in the quarter, a DaSilva jumper at the 1:30 mark pulled the Bears to within 11 (42-31).

Bridgewater, however, was unable to get any closer. Framingham got up by as many as 20 (51-31) in the final period before settling for the 59-42 victory.

The Rams connected on 37% (18-49) of their field goal attempts, while the Bears shot just 25% (16-62) from the floor including 3-for-24 (13%) from behind the arc. Framingham held a 50-35 rebounding advantage.

The conference schedule continues for both teams on Wednesday evening. The Bears travel to Fitchburg State University for a 5:30 game with the Falcons, while the Rams entertain the Owls of Westfield State University at 6 p.m..

Portions of release courtesy of BSU Sports Information