Women’s Basketball Edged at Curry in League-Opener, 60-54

MILTON, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene College women's basketball team absorbed a 60-54 loss at Curry Wednesday evening in the first conference game of the season.

The Lions fall to 4-3 overall and 0-1 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference. The Colonels improve to 3-3 on the year and 1-0 in league play with the win.

Nicole Greer (Odenton, Md.) recorded a double-double, pouring in a game-high 22 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. BreAnna Fraser (Henderson, Nev.) led the visitors with 12 boards while adding three assists. Celina Calderon (Lompoc, Calif.) netted eight points and collected three steals.

Greer knocked down a jumper with 1:13 left to play in the first period to cut Eastern Nazarene's deficit to 13-11. Curry responded with a triple by Christina Deiorio with less than 20 seconds remaining to widen the margin to 16-11 after 10 minutes of action.

The Lions trailed by six points at halftime after scoring 16 points in the second quarter while the Colonels tallied 17, 33-27.

Eastern Nazarene trailed by just two points heading into the fourth frame, 43-41. The visitors outscored the hosts 14-10 in the third stanza.

The Lions seized their first lead of the night 2:22 into the final quarter as Calderon nailed a three-pointer, 46-43.

The Colonels reclaimed a one-point edge with 6:38 left to play on a pair of free throws by Shannon Griffith, 47-46.

The two teams traded baskets until Emily Irwin scored seven-straight points to push Curry ahead 58-51 with 37 seconds to go in regulation.

 After Griffith converted two free throws to stretch the home side's advantage to 60-51, Greer sank a trey from the right corner with 11 seconds on the clock.

The Lions finished the game with a field-goal percentage of 33.3% while draining 4-of-21 attempts from the perimeter. The Colonels shot 42.3% from the floor on the night and 27.3% from beyond the arc.

Up next, Eastern Nazarene visits Endicott December 5.