Big First Half Pushes WBB Past Eastern Nazarene

NEW LONDON, Conn. – In a meeting between two of the top teams in the New England Collegiate Conference, Mitchell College posted a 71-49 victory over Eastern Nazarene College on Tuesday night in a women's basketball showdown at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

The Mariners (9-5 overall) picked up their fourth straight win and remained unbeaten in conference play at 8-0. Amina Wiley led all players with 18 points and 15 rebounds and also added five steals and four assists. Le'Sandra Turner contributed 17 points, four assists and three steals while Kate McCormack netted a season-high 10 points to go with a game-high seven assists.

Eastern Nazarene (11-4 overall), which entered the game tied for second place in the league standings, dropped to 6-2 in NECC play. Kyra Fleharty paced the Lions with a double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds, and Stella Dulay came off the bench to chip in nine points.

The Mariners, who never trailed in the contest, took control behind a dominant first half. Mitchell shot 63 percent as a team and led 42-19 at the break. Wiley and Turner fueled the offense with 12 and 11 points, respectively, in the half.

Mitchell continued to build the margin in the third quarter, pushing the lead to as many as 30 following a jumper by Turner with 4:04 remaining in the period. The Lions countered with a 14-2 spurt to close the quarter, whittling the deficit to 60-42 with 10 minutes to go. Fleharty and Alyssa Cosio each drilled threes in the run while Jenn Burnham tacked on a pair of buckets.

Despite the late push in the third quarter, ENC could get no closer than 16 points in the final stanza. A late three by Kelsey Hernandez—her third of the game—provided the final points of the contest and bumped the margin back to 22.

Mitchell shot 49 percent for the game and outscored ENC 40-18 in the paint. The Mariners, who also held a 47-37 edge on the glass, limited the Lions to just 28-percent shooting.

Mitchell will next play at Becker College on Thursday, January 17 at 6 p.m. Eastern Nazarene returns to action at home against Bay Path University on Tuesday, January 22 at 5:30 p.m.