WCSU Storms Past WBB

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College women's basketball team suffered a 62-32 setback at the hands of Western Connecticut State University on Tuesday night in non-conference action at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

Kaitlyn LaBonte led all scorers with 16 points on 7-for-15 shooting and added eight rebounds and four steals to pace the Colonials. Jancy Sherwood chipped in with 11 points while Gabrielle Hurlbert did a little bit of everything, finishing with nine points, nine rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks.

Francesca Pinard led the Mariners with 10 points and grabbed five rebounds. Mitchell shot just 26 percent as a team and committed 30 turnovers. 

Western scored the first eight points of the contest and never looked back as LaBonte and Sherwood each drained a three during the spurt. The duo combined for 18 of the team's 21 points in the opening quarter, with Sherwood supplying a dagger three from deep to end the period with the Colonials up 14.

The margin grew to as many as 22 in the second quarter before Mitchell ended the half on a 7-0 run. Jessica Shepherd buried a three-pointer with 1:38 to go, and Lehayla Cruz and Jessica Lohneiss each added baskets in the final 1:13. Still, the Mariners trailed 33-18 at the break. 

Western widened the gap to 19 by the end of the third quarter and 30 by the final buzzer. The Colonials limited the Mariners to just 18 percent shooting over the final 20 minutes and finished with a 46-34 advantage on the glass for the game. 

Mitchell (2-5 overall) will next host Dean College on Thursday, December 6 at 5 p.m. Western (4-3 overall) returns to action at the University of Southern Maine on Saturday, December 10 at 1 p.m.