Women’s Basketball Outlasts New England College in Non-Conference Thriller

QUINCY, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene women's basketball team posted a 61-59 victory over New England College Saturday evening at the Lahue Physical Education Center.

The Lions improve to 2-2 overall with the win while the Pilgrims dip to 2-3 on the year.

Ruby Leon (Fairfield, Calif.) scored 18 points to lead Eastern Nazarene on the night. Abbie Tonello (Bourne, Mass.) finished with 15 points and five boards. Christina Saint-Pierre (Lantana, Fla.) notched 11 points, seven rebounds and three blocks.

The Lions raced out to a five-point edge 2:17 into the contest as Michelle Herrera (Santa Barbara, Calif.) nailed a three-pointer, 7-2.

The visitors leveled the score at 15-15 with 9:23 left to play in the first half as Georgie Pennington banked in a layup.

The Pilgrims used a 6-0 run to grab a 23-17 advantage with 4:34 remaining.

Eastern Nazarene narrowed the margin to 26-24 with less than 1:30 to go in the first period as Saint-Pierre sank a lay-in.

At the break, Eastern Nazarene trailed New England College 31-27.

The Lions were led by Leon with 11 points while Herrera notched six first-half points.

The hosts sank 35.5% of their field-goal attempts in the opening frame and 3-of-9 from behind the arc. The Pilgrims shot 33.3% from the floor and drained three treys on nine attempts.

Eastern Nazarene clawed back into the contest with 12:51 left to play, tying the game at 39-39 on a layup by Saint-Pierre. The Lions captured their first lead of the second half as Nicole Greer (Odenton, Md.) drained a jump shot with 11:23 on the clock, 41-39.

The Lions built a 47-41 advantage with 8:53 to go in regulation after a 6-0 run, capped off by a pair of free throws by Lucy Santos (Vallejo, Calif.).

The Pilgrims knotted the score at 50-50 with 5:32 remaining on two free throws by Katarina Muska.

After Leon evened the game at 57-57 with 2:36 left to play, Saint-Pierre drained two free throws to give the home side a 59-57 advantage with 1:34 on the clock. She sank another free throw with 41 seconds remaining to widen the gap to three, 60-57.

New England College pulled to within a point of Eastern Nazarene with 33 seconds left to go as Burgess nailed a pair of free throws, 60-59.

The Lions restored their lead to two on a made free throw by Leon with 20 seconds to play, 61-59.

With four seconds remaining in regulation, the Pilgrims' Burgess headed to the charity stripe with a chance to level the contest. After Burgess missed both efforts, Kiley Williams corralled a critical offensive rebound and tossed up a lay-up as the final seconds dwindled. Williams' attempt bounced off the iron and out as time expired.

Eastern Nazarene outscored New England College 34-28 in the second half to earn its second win of the season.

The closely-contested game featured nine tie scores and six lead changes.

The Pilgrims were led by Kayla Lawlor with a game-high 23 points. Taylor Burgess hauled in 19 boards and added 13 points.

Eastern Nazarene shot 40.4% from the floor on the evening, including 30% from three-point range. New England College finished the game with a field-goal percentage of 30.3% while connecting on 20% from long distance.

Up next, Eastern Nazarene continues its four-game home-stand with a non-conference bout against Johnson & Wales November 26.