SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (January 18, 2025) – The Western New England women's basketball team saw an early first quarter lead slowly chipped away at by the visiting Colonels of Curry College, as Curry would make a full comeback after being down by as many as 17 in the second quarter, though the Golden Bears would find some late offense in the fourth quarter to get by the Colonels by a final score of 71-66.

Records:

• Western New England: 14-1, 7-1 CNE
• Curry College: 5-10, 2-6 CNE

How it Happened:

The Golden Bears opened the game with a quick 9-0 run to gang up on the Colonels, who struggled shooting the ball in the early goings. Lilly Hedge would have a quick four points on the board while Emma Novajasky and Emma Kahn would strike as well, Kahn from distance, giving WNE their quick lead. Curry would get back within six after Kasey Reeves would sink a three-ball with 4:59 to play in the opening quarter, though Western New England would turn up the pressure again, taking their first double-digit lead of the game as Perry Blasetti would put up a layup, giving the Golden Bears a 16-5 lead. WNE would lead by as many as 17 in the first quarter before Curry would score the final four points of the quarter, seeing WNE lead 22-9. Western New England was 3/6 from distance in the opening frame, shooting 9/16 overall.

Nora Young and Lilly Hedge were on the scoreboard first in the second quarter for Western New England, growing WNE's lead back up to 16 with seven minutes to play in the second. Curry would go on a small 7-3 run with Reeves handling much of the offense for the Colonels. Back-to-back triples for Western New England, one coming from the hot hand of Emma Kahn while Lilly Hedge continues her dominance on the court, would stifle Curry's attempt to make a comeback. WNE's lead would rise to 17 again with 4:24 to play in the second before Curry would begin to chip away, scoring the final four points of the half. The Golden Bears would take a 36-24 lead after one half of play. WNE shot significantly less from the floor than in the first quarter, nailing just five shots and only shooting 2/7 from deep.

Curry would continue to chip away at Western New England's lead, a lead that got to as many as 17 overall in the contest. WNE's halftime lead would quickly drop to just five points after Lauren Morse sunk a three-ball from the corner, which brought WNE's lead down to 39-34. Hedge and Kahn would keep the Golden Bears ahead, though not for long, as Curry would even the score at 45 with 2:32 to play in the third and would take their first lead of the game after Morse would get fouled while hitting a layup and sinking the foul shot. Curry's lad jumped to three with 59 seconds to play in the third after Reeves continued to be deadly from the floor, cashing in a triple, though Emma Kahn would have an answer of her own with just five seconds left in the quarter, which evened the score at 50 after three quarters of play. Curry was excellent from the field in the third quarter, shooting 10/14 overall and was 4/5 from deep.

Despite their efforts to sink the Colonels, Western New England would struggle from the floor to open the fourth quarter, allowing the Colonels to take their largest lead of the game, four, with 7:56 left to play in the game. Kylie McCarthy would put the Colonels in front by three with 5:57 to play after the Golden Bears would get back within one again. Curry would stay in front of the Golden Bears with under four minutes remaining in the game as Reeves would sink two free throws. From there, the Golden Bears would desperately look for offense and would get just that, seeing Shaina Cooney and Nora Young contribute on the offensive end, giving WNE a one-point lead. The Golden Bears would stuff the Curry offense following their run and would come up clutch from the free throw line as Hedge and Paige Winter would knock down timely shots that would allow Western New England to pull away from the Colonels, defeating Curry by a final score of 71-66, avoiding a major upset.

Inside the Lines:

• After a red-hot shooting effort in the first quarter, the Golden Bears would slow down and shoot just 39% from the floor in the game in the final three quarters. WNE went 1/6 from distance in the final quarter, though 12 of their 21 points came at the foul line.
• Lilly Hedge was in double figures with her second straight double-double, scoring 15 points while grabbing 12 rebounds and picking up four assists.
• Emma Kahn led the Golden Bears with 18 points on the afternoon, including 4/6 from deep. Kahn also produced two blocks.
• The Golden Bears got 25 bench points on the night, with both Nora Young and Erin Reen contributing seven of those each.
• Curry saw four of their five starters each score in double figures on the afternoon, with Kasey Reeves scoring 21 points to lead the Colonels.
• WNE out-rebounded their opponent 39-23 in the win.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears will head out east to take on Suffolk University on Wednesday, January 22, at 5:30 PM.