Women’s Basketball Clipped by Curry, 58-51

QUINCY, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene women's basketball team absorbed a 58-51 loss to Curry Saturday afternoon at the Lahue Physical Education Center.

The Lions drop to 5-13 on the season and 1-10 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference with the decision. The Colonels improve to 10-8 overall and 7-5 in league action with the win.

Ruby Leon (Fairfield, Calif.) netted a game-high 20 points while adding seven boards. Senior Abbie Tonello (Bourne, Mass.) registered her first double-double of the year with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Nicole Greer (Odenton, Md.) finished with 11 rebounds and four points while Jordan Grays (Elk Grove, Calif.) chipped in with eight boards and four points.

Eastern Nazarene raced out to a 9-2 advantage six minutes into the contest, capped off by a follow-up basket by Katy Teare (Frazier Park, Calif.).

Curry clawed back to tie the score at 13-13 with 7:32 left to play as Shannon Griffith tossed in a lay-up.

Jasmine Johnson (Los Angeles, Calif.) knocked down the first of two free throws to put the Lions ahead 20-19 with 2:24 left to play.

The Colonels claimed a 22-20 lead with 27 seconds to go in the half as Alyssa Keeney sank a three-pointer.

Eastern Nazarene was led by Leon with five points and four rebounds at halftime. Greer recorded seven boards and two points in the opening frame.

The hosts connected on 22.2% of their field-goal attempts in the first half, including just 1-of-8 from behind the arc. The visitors shot 29.0% from the floor in the opening 20 minutes of play and drained three treys on eight tries.

Curry stretched its lead to 10 with 13:48 remaining on a trey by Ashley Assarian, 35-25.

The Lions cut the deficit to three with less than seven minutes left to play, 43-40, as Leon drilled the first of a pair from the charity stripe.

The Colonels regained a 10-point edge with under a minute remaining, 55-45, as Kylie Beltz drained a free throw.

Eastern Nazarene trimmed the margin to 56-51 late in the contest on lay-ins by Tonello and Grays.

The Lions shot 26.4% from the field on the day while being held to 2-for-18 shooting from three-point range. The Colonels finished with a field-goal percentage of 32.8% to go with 6-of-15 from beyond the arc.

Up next, Eastern Nazarene travels to the Ocean State to battle Roger Williams February 4.