SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (February 11, 2026) – The Western New England women's basketball team trailed big following the opening quarter, but chipped away and got a late triple with under three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter from Paige Winter, aiding the Golden Bears in a 59-55 come-from-behind victory over the Hawks of Roger Williams University on Wednesday night inside the Anthony S. Caprio Alumni Healthful Living Center. 

Records:

• Western New England: 16-6, 10-3 CNE
• Roger Williams University: 12-10, 8-5 CNE

How it Happened:

First Quarter:

• Western New England and Perry Blasetti opened the game with the first point of the night after Roger Williams committed a turnover on the opening possession of the game. Just six points were scored in the opening four minutes of the game, as Lilli Clark got the Hawks going with back-to-back layups. The two teams exchanged points with Hannah Blake converting an and-one while RWU's Sophia Coppola hit from the outside as the teams were tied at seven with 5:10 remaining in the quarter. 
• Coppola started a run of her own for the Hawks following some back-and-forth action, scoring five points in a row while the Hawks went on a 9-0 run in the quarter to take a 16-7 lead over WNE. The Golden Bears shaved off just two points before the end of the opening frame when Devlyn McDonald got on the scoreboard with a layup, as the Golden Bears trailed 18-11 after the opening quarter. 
• Western New England made just five field goals in the first ten minutes of the game, none from distance. RWU hit seven of their first 12 shots in the game, going 2/4 from the outside. 

Second Quarter:

• Sophie Hedge got on the scoreboard with a three-pointer to open the second quarter, while Katie Regan was up to a quick four in the game following a pair of free throws from the Hawks as WNE brought RWU's lead down to four just two minutes into the second quarter. 
• The Golden Bears brought the game within two twice as the quarter passed the midway points, with Hannah Blake continuing to score inside, but the Golden Bears couldn't get over the hump in the quarter as the Hawks maintained their lead. A pair of free throws, one from Lottia Barnes and another from Devlyn McDonald ended the scoring in the opening half for WNE, who trailed 27-24 at the break. 
• Western New England's defense held RWU to just three field goals in the quarter, while Western New England shot 35% from the field, making five field goals in the quarter. 

Third Quarter:

• Paige Winter scored for the first time in the game just a minute into the third quarter, which brought RWU's lead down to one, its smallest since the 7-7 score in the opening quarter. Winter then tied the game at 29 with a three-pointer with 6:16 left in the quarter. Western New England fought all the way back to take the lead with 5:03 remaining in the quarter when Erin Reen knocked down a corner triple, giving the Blue and Gold a 32-31 advantage. 
• Western New England continued to score as Perry Blasetti and Olivia Chrzan helped the Golden Bears to a four-point lead with 1:38 to go in the quarter, with Chrzan hitting a layup, plus a foul shot on one possession. The Hawks scored five points in just over 40 seconds to re-take the lead before Regan found a last-second bucket that gave WNE a 39-38 lead at the end of the third frame. 
• The WNE defense stepped up again, holding RWU to 28% shooting in the quarter while the Golden Bears hit six field goals, two from the outside in the quarter, and outrebounded the Hawks 12-5. 

Fourth Quarter:

• Olivia Chrzan continued to produce for Western New England off the bench, opening the quarter with a layup. Blasetti had four quick points before the seven-minute mark of the fourth to get into double figures and give Western New England its largest lead of the game, six points, leading 45-39 with 7:49 remaining in the quarter. A layup with 6:06 to go from Paige Winter improved WNE's lead to seven, 49-42. 
• Roger Williams never gave up, pulling back within three with 4:10 remaining in the quarter when Coppola got hot from the field again. Western New England came up with a big triple with 2:59 to play in the game that stopped the RWU run when Winter took a feed from Erin Reen and splashed the shot to put the Golden Bears in front 55-48. The Hawks answered with a 7-1 run to get back within one with 47 seconds remaining as Western New England held onto a 56-55 lead. After both teams committed turnovers, the Golden Bears had the advantage at the free throw line, scoring their final three points of the game at the line while holding the Hawks to no points in the final 47 seconds, taking a big CNE victory, 59-55. 
• WNE hit five of their nine shots in the quarter and made nine free throws to ice the game. RWU shot just 36% in the quarter, hitting one of their two shots from distance.

Inside the Lines:

• Paige Winter led Western New England with ten points, going 4/6 from the field and 2/4 from deep. Winter also pulled out six assists and three steals in the win. 
• Perry Blasetti was also in double figures with ten points and grabbed eight rebounds. 
• Nine of ten Golden Bears who saw action on Wednesday had at least a pair of points. 
• WNE shot 40% from the field in the game, making four triples and 13 free throws. 
• 22 of RWU's 55 points came from senior Sophia Coppola, who shot 6/15 from the floor, going 2/4 from distance and 8/10 from the free throw line. 
• The Hawks made just 18 field goals in the game, shooting 38%. 
• WNE has now taken the last five from Roger Williams in the series after previously losing seven in a row. 

Up Next On The Schedule:

• The Golden Bears ship up to Boston for a road contest over the weekend against Wentworth Institute of Technology on Saturday, February 14 at 12:00 PM.