BOSTON – Led by sophomore center Kirsten Morrison (North Reading, Mass.), the UMass Boston women’s basketball team earned a hard fought 55-51 victory over Westfield State University on Tuesday to continue one of the best starts in the program’s history as it improved to 7-2.
Morrison finished with a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds to give the Beacons a two-game win streak going into the holiday break. On the night the 6-2 North Reading native was 10-for-16 from the floor and had two blocks and one steal.
Morrison’s basket in the final seconds of regulation pushed UMB’s lead back to four making it perhaps her biggest field goal of the night. With Westfield right on the Beacons’ heals and only trailing by two, the Owls quickly fouled Morrison on the in-bound pass with less than seven seconds to play.
The reigning LEC and D3Hoops.com Northeast Region Rookie of the Year went to the line for her 1-and-1. She missed her first free throw but collected an offensive board over four Owls players. She then drove to the hoop to score her final basket of the night and secure the Beacons’ non-conference victory.
Westfield State (5-4) saw Jen Ashton finish with a team-best 16 points and game highs of nine assists and six steals, while Gabby Felix dropped in 11 for the Owls.
UMass Boston freshman forward Olivia Murphy (Canton, Mass.) was once again dominant on the glass collecting a game-high 13 boards, while senior forward Teresa Pina (Boston, Mass.) finished with 11 points and eight rebounds. Sophomore guard Lauren Perra (Taunton, Mass.) drained a game-high three 3-pointers to finish with nine points in the victory. The Taunton native also had five assists.
The Beacons shot 38 percent from the floor (24-for-64), while Westfield shot 33 percent (19-for-57). On the glass UMB dominated the contest from start to finish as they out-rebounded the Owls, 50-32, with 22 of those boards coming on the offensive glass.
UMass Boston returns to action on December 30 when they take part in the Key Largo Classic in Key Largo, Florida. In game one of the two-day tournament the Beacons will face Maine Maritime Academy at 4 p.m.
Westfield returns to action on Saturday, Dec. 15, at Elms College.
CORCORAN NAMED MASCAC TRACK ATHLETE OF WEEK: Westfield State University senior Brendan Corcoran (Wapole) has been selected the MASCAC indoor track athlete of the week.
Corcoran finished fourth in a field of 47 runners in the 800 meter run at the Harvard University Open on Dec. 8 with a fine early season time of 1:56.96.
