Golden Bears limit Blazers to 19.7% shooting en route to sixth consecutive win

CHICOPEE, Mass. (December 10, 2016) – The Western New England University women's basketball team wrapped up its first semester schedule with a 74-40 victory at Elms College this afternoon in non-conference action at Picknelly Arena.

Top Performers
• Senior forward Emily Anderson (Rocky Hill, Conn.) again fueled the Western New England offense with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field, 1-of-3 from beyond the arc and 2-of-2 from the free throw line. She also recorded seven rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in 23 minutes as the Golden Bears extended their winning streak to six games.
• Junior guard Dorothy O'Neill (Staten Island, N.Y.) shot 4-of-5 from the field, including a perfect 3-of-3 from three-point range, on her way to 11 points, four assists, two rebounds and one steal.
• Senior forward Paige Young (Berlin, Conn.) finished with seven points, eight rebounds, two assists and one block.  

• Sophomore forward Nakia Mabin (Bridgeport, Conn.) led Elms with ten points and six boards (all offensive) in 27 minutes off the bench.
• Junior guard Mackenzie LaRochelle (Chicopee, Mass.) grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds while adding nine points, four assists, two steals and one block.

Game Review
• Elms trailed by just two (8-6) following a layup by freshman guard Rachel Granger (Hampden, Mass.) 3:19 into the contest, before the Golden Bears scored seven straight points to extend their lead to nine. Western New England, which limited the Blazers to just five points over the final 4:20 of the first quarter, led 19-11 after ten minutes.
 • The Golden Bears broke the game open in the second quarter, using an early 8-0 run to extend their advantage to 16 (27-11) with 6:55 on the clock. The lead continued to grow after that point, as Western New England held a 39-18 cushion at halftime after holding the Blazers to 13.8% (4-of-29) shooting over the opening 20 minutes.
• Anderson scored the first seven points of the third quarter for the Golden Bears, who led by 24 (46-22) after the senior connected from long range at the 6:17 mark. Western New England continued to pull away later in the period, as O'Neill's three-pointer with seven seconds remaining made it a 29-point game (57-28).
• Freshman guard Hannah Zirkel (Westbury, N.Y.) drained three free throws with 3:15 left in the game to extend Western New England's lead to 34 (70-36), and the Golden Bears would go on to win by the same margin.  

Notes
• Western New England limited the Blazers to 19.7% (12-of-61) shooting and scored 23 points off 18 Elms turnovers.
• The Golden Bears shot 46.3% (25-of-54) from the field, 50% (6-of-12) from three-point range, and 85.7% (18-of-21) from the free throw line.
• Ten of the 14 players on Western New England's roster scored in the contest.
• The Golden Bears have won six consecutive games for the first time since the 2012-13 campaign, when they won six straight from January 23-February 6.

Up Next
Western New England (7-2) returns to action on Tuesday, January 3 with a key CCC contest at the University of New England, while Elms (4-4) hosts St. Joseph (Conn.) on Wednesday, January 4.