Women’s Basketball Closes First Semester Action with 71-57 Victory over MIT
Framingham, Mass. – The Framingham State University women's basketball team opened the game with a 9-0 run and led 22-7 after a quarter as they went on to secure a 71-57 victory over MIT in non-conference action at the Athletic Center.
With the win, the Rams continue to improve upon the best start in school history as they are now 9-0 on the year, while MIT falls to 7-2 with the loss.
The Rams were led by 19 points from junior Raegan Mulherin (Baldwinville, Mass.). Mulherin connected on 7-of-16 from the floor including 5-of-11 from behind the arc. Senior Alycia Rackliffe (Feeding Hills, Mass.) racked up her fourth double double of the season with 16 points and a game-best 15 rebounds, while classmate Monta Connolly (Lynn, Mass.) added a double double of her own with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Junior Quinn O'Connell (Sterling, Mass.) added 10 points, six rebounds and five assists.
The Engineers were led by 13 points off the bench from sophomore forward Sophie Gershon (New York, NY). Gershon connected on 6-of-13 from the floor while grabbing seven boards. Sophomores Taylor V'Dovec (Blaine, Wash.) and Kara Holinski (Livonia, Mich.) and freshman Cindy Si (San Antonio, Texas) chipped in with 10 points apiece.
The Rams opened the game with a 9-0 spurt over the first five minutes that featured a pair of buckets in the paint from Rackliffe. MIT cut the lead to 9-4 on a jumper by V'Dovec just under the five minute mark, but the Rams closed the period with 13-3 run to take a 22-7 lead after one.
The Rams extended the lead to as many as 17 in the second quarter before taking a 36-25 lead into the half.
MIT cut away at the lead in the third quarter and pulled to within six (43-37) midway through the frame. The Engineers cut it to three on a Gerson layup with a 1:55 left in the third, but a Mary Kate O'Day (Berlin, Mass.) layup started a 6-1 run for the Rams to close the third quarter leading 53-45.
An O'Day layup in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter pushed the advantage back to 10 and the Engineers never got closer than five in the final ten minutes of action.
The Rams outscored the Engineers 48-24 in the paint in the game while shooting 45% from the floor in the game.
The Rams are back in action December 30th when they face Roger Williams University at the Springfield Tournament, while the Engineers are back in action December 29th against Bates at the Salem State Holiday Tournament.