WESTFIELD, Mass. (December 6, 2025) – The Western New England women's basketball team had the momentum from the opening jump and never let off the brakes, en route to a blowout 84-47 victory over the hosting Owls of Westfield State University on Saturday afternoon from The Woodward Center.

Records:

• Western New England: 7-3
• Westfield State University: 6-2

How it Happened:

First Quarter:

• Hannah Blake got rolling from the get-go, scoring the first six points for the Golden Bears in the game overall. Westfield State made some noise to begin the game, getting a good layup from Tavi Williams, plus a foul shot, but the lead never escaped WNE's grasp throughout the contest. 
• Up one, 6-5, WNE went on a run of 11-0 to quickly sink the home team, getting contributions from Sophie Hedge, Lottia Barnes, and Sarah West at the rim, while Barnes connected on her first triple of the afternoon, seeing the Golden Bears take its first double-digit lead of the game, 17-5. Blake finished out the quarter with the final bucket, seeing an assist come from Perry Blasetti, giving the Golden Bears a ten-point, 21-11 opening quarter lead.
• Western New England was just 1/10 from the outside, but dominated the paint in the opening frame, picking up nine field goals on 15 attempts. Westfield State shot just 4/14 for the quarter. The Golden Bears had a high advantage in rebounds, 19-7. 

Second Quarter:

• Western New England's assist leader Paige Winter picked up a triple to begin play in the second quarter while the Golden Bears picked up the opening seven points of the quarter to run its lead to 17, with Blasetti and Blake getting in on the scoring for the blue and gold. The Owls had no answer for the Golden Bears, as WNE continued pouring it on in the quarter. 
• Sophie Hedge began another run for Western New England at the midway point of the quarter, seeing nine of the final 11 points go its way to end the quarter. Winter picked up three assists in the quarter, including the final bucket of the frame from Blake, giving the Golden Bears a 41-20 lead. WNE made over half its shots in the quarter while holding Westfield to three makes overall. 

Third Quarter:

• Westfield State looked to build momentum to begin the second half, hitting three free throws just ten seconds into the frame on a foul, but the Golden Bears quickly responded with the next six points to take their largest lead of the game, 24 points. Hannah Blake and Sophie Hedge continued their dominance on the floor for Western New England in the frame, growing the lead to extraordinary numbers.
• A 14-0 run in the frame brought Western New England's lead to as many as 35, with Lottia Barnes capping off the run with a pair of free throws. Down the stretch, Western New England got contributions from Sarah West and Olivia Chrzan, who picked up the final four points, including Chrzan's buzzer-beater, giving Western New England a 67-33 lead at the end of the quarter.
• The Golden Bears shot 10/16 from the floor in the quarter overall, while holding Westfield to 4/16 shooting overall. 

Fourth Quarter:

• With the game well in hand, Western New England continued to bury the Owls, scoring nine of the first 11 points in the fourth, with Blake, West, Winter, and Erin Reen contributing to the stat sheet that saw WNE's lead grow to over 40 points.
• The Golden Bears saw contributions from Devlyn McDonald, Katie Regan, Janessa Yaconiello, and Gianna Strange in the fourth quarter, ending the game with an 84-47 victory on Saturday. 
• WNE shot 50% from the field in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Owls in every quarter in the game to come up with the 37-point win. 

Inside the Lines:

• Hannah Blake recorded 24 points on 12/16 shooting, grabbing two rebounds and four blocks overall. 
• Sophie Hedge was again in double-figures for WNE, scoring 15 points on 6/11 shooting, grabbing eight rebounds, three assists, and a steal. 
• Paige Winter was one point off her first career double-double, picking up nine points and a remarkable ten assists in the win. 
• The Golden Bears shot 50% from the field, hitting 29 shots inside the two-point land. 
• The Owls shot just 26% from the field and were 4/23 from deep. 
• This is the largest margin of victory for any team in the series. WNE has won the last four overall. 

Coach's Corner:
Head Coach Nicki Chaszar was asked what she is seeing out of the team that is leading to improvements on the court and then what impressed coach about all of the impressive performances today, including the 24 points from Hannah Blake. "We had multiple players put up great numbers today. Hannah Blake had a tremendous performance and was almost flawless around the rim. Paige, Sophie, and Lottia each being close to double-doubles really shows how competitive and locked in we were on the offensive end. Overall it felt like one of our most complete team efforts of the season and a great way for us to close out the semester," Chaszar stated.
Hannah Blake was also interviewed and asked first, what worked for her on the court that led to the 24 points. "The team ran the offense very effectively and put me in good positions to score. I got some solid looks early on and my teammates continuously allowed me to take shots where I feel confident." Second, she was asked what she liked about the team's performance overall. "I think we were really good at sharing the ball and playing as a cohesive unit. Westfield pressured us well and we were able to stay patient and find the open man. We have trust in every person on our team to do the job and today showed that!"
Up Next on the Schedule:

• Western New England returns from the holiday break and jumps back into Conference of New England play with a game against Gordon College on the road on Saturday, January 3 at 1:00 PM.