SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (November 21, 2023) – The Western New England women's basketball team outscored the visiting Warriors of Eastern Connecticut State University 20-8 in the final quarter of the night to grab their first win over the Warriors in four years, taking down Eastern Connecticut 63-52 behind 31 combined points from Shaina Cooney and Lindsey Carey.

Records:

• Western New England: 4-2
• Eastern Connecticut: 2-2

How it Happened:
Abby Garaban got the Golden Bears going in the first quarter with a made jump shot, while Emma Kahn got to the rim for an early and-one chance, which she was able to convert on, which gave the Golden Bears a three-point lead. Eastern Connecticut and Western New England would go back and forth in the first quarter, with neither team taking more than a four-point lead. Shaina Cooney would dominate on the offensive end in terms of scoring and rebounding on the night, grabbing five early points. The Warriors would close out the final 2:00 of the first half on a 6-0 run to take an 18-16 lead.

Lindsey Carey would open the second quarter with a three-ball that gave Western New England a one-point lead, though the Warriors would quickly erase the lead from Western New England as Eastern's top scorer Taylor Salato would connect on two free throws. The quarter would only see seven points scored by each team, as Eastern Connecticut would take a 25-23 lead at the half.

The Warriors dropped the first six points of the third quarter to take their biggest lead of the game at eight points. Kya Mayo and Cara McKettigan would grab points for Eastern before their run was shut down by another three-point basket from Lindsey Carey, getting WNE back on the scoreboard again. Eastern would get their nine-point lead back again before Western New England would drop the Warriors lead down to two points after Abby Garaban lifted WNE with and-one. Garaban would score seven of her ten points in the third quarter, as the Golden Bears would trail 44-43 after 45 minutes of play.

The Golden Bears would open the fourth quarter with the first seven points as Tara Laugeni and Shaina Cooney would give Western New England a six-point lead, a lead they did not lose for the rest of the game. Nine points in the quarter would come via Shaina Cooney, who would drop 16 in the game to help Western New England defeat Eastern Connecticut. The WNE defense held the Warriors to eight points in the fourth quarter while scoring 20 of their own to take a 63-52 win.

Inside the Lines:

• Shaina Cooney scored 16 points on the night while ripping down 12 rebounds, recording another double-double on the night.
• Lindsay Carey shot 6/8 from the field and 3/4 from distance to score 15 points on the night.
• Emma Kahn and Abby Garaban also recoded double digits in points for Western New England on the night.
• Western New England held Taylor Salato to just 13 points after the Warriors junior came into the game averaging over 20 points per game.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• WNE begins conference play, traveling to Roger Williams University on Wednesday, November 29 at 5:30 PM.