SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (January 27, 2016) - The Western New England University women's basketball team limited Gordon College to seven first-half points and 22.7 percent shooting (10-of-44) overall en route to a 69-24 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) victory this evening at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.
 
The Golden Bears, who led 22-3 after the first quarter and 40-7 at halftime, shot 40 percent (26-of-65) from the field and scored 28 points off 26 Gordon turnovers. Western New England led by as many as 51 early in the fourth quarter on its way to the team's sixth 20+ point victory in conference play this season.
 
Junior Sammie Olson (Tolland, Conn.) paced a balanced offensive performance for the Golden Bears with a game-high 14 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the field, 2-of-4 from beyond the arc and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. Olson also added four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block in the convincing victory. Classmates Sammie Battaini (Leominster, Mass.) and Emily Anderson (Rocky Hill, Conn.) were also in double figures with 11 points each, while senior forward Chelsea Vujs (Berlin, Conn.) added a game-high ten boards to go with six points, bringing her to within 16 points of tying Roma St. George '82 for 12^th place on the program's all-time scoring list.
 
Freshman guard Brooke Dyson (Houston, Tex.) led Gordon with seven points and four rebounds, while classmate Jess Ryan (Milford, N.H.) added five points and sophomore Kristen Smith (Littleton, Mass.) finished with four points and five rebounds.
 
Western New England set the tone early, racing out to a 12-0 lead with the help of six points each from Battaini and Olson, while the defense forced four turnovers and kept the Fighting Scots off the board until Ryan converted a layup 4:17 into the contest. The Golden Bears outscored Gordon 10-1 over the remainder of the quarter, and led by 19 (22-3) after ten minutes.
 
Anderson knocked down a three-pointer 26 seconds into the second period, and Western New England saw its lead eventually reach 30 (33-3) just over four minutes into the frame. The Golden Bears, who held a 40-7 advantage at the break, scored the first 12 points of the second half to extend their cushion to 45 (52-7). That margin would not dip below 40 the rest of the way as Western New England cruised to a 45-point triumph, its largest of the season.
 
The Golden Bears (10-8, 7-4 CCC) will be back in action on Saturday afternoon with a key road matchup at Roger Williams. The Hawks currently hold a one-game lead over Western New England for third place in the conference standings. Gordon (4-14, 0-11 CCC) returns home on Saturday to host Eastern Nazarene.