Women’s Basketball Pours in Program-Record 102 Points in Win Over Western Connecticut State at Brandeis Tip-Off Tournament

WALTHAM, Mass.- Senior Kayla Torio (Manteca, Calif.) tallied 26 points and junior Tia Torio (Manteca, Calif.) added 21 points to lead the Eastern Nazarene College women's basketball team to a 102-94 victory over Western Connecticut State at the Brandeis Tip-Off Tournament Friday evening.

The Lions improve to 2-0 on the season with the win while the Colonials fall to 0-1 overall.

Kayla Torio finished with eight rebounds and four assists to go with her 26 points in the contest. Tia Torio nearly posted a triple-double on the night as she netted 21 points, hauled in 12 boards, and dished out nine assists off the bench.

Seniesha Sekaquaptewa (Scottsdale, Ariz.) scored 17 points while Amber Amortegui (Davie, Fla.) finished with a career-high 13 points. Alyssa Cosio Murillo (Santa Barbara, Calif.) chipped in with 11 points and Michelle Detwiler (Elkhart, Ind.) recorded 10 points and seven rebounds.

After falling behind 7-2 early in the contest, Eastern Nazarene clawed back to grab an 8-7 edge on a pair of free throws by Sekaquaptewa with 5:21 remaining in the first quarter.

The Lions strung together an 11-0 run to widen their lead to 19-10 with 2:43 left to play in the opening frame.

Eastern Nazarene owned a 24-18 advantage after 10 minutes of action.

Western Connecticut State cut the deficit to two with seven minutes to go in the second period, 31-29, as Genesis Torres capped off a three-point play at the charity stripe.

A lay-in by Tia Torio with 5:44 remaining in the first half pushed the Lions' lead to 38-29.

Eastern Nazarene boasted a 53-46 lead heading into the halftime intermission.

The Lions shot 61.8% from the field and 40% from behind the arc in the first half while the Colonials connected on 28% of their field-goal attempts in the first two quarters, including 6-of-30 from three-point range.

Eastern Nazarene surged ahead to extend its margin to 17 points with 7:06 left to play in the third frame as Murillo knocked down a jumper, 65-48.

Western Connecticut State chalked up 14 consecutive points to narrow the gap to 65-62 with 4:22 to go in the third.

The Lions responded with back-to-back layups by Tia Torio and Detwiler to stretch their advantage to seven, 69-62 with 3:48 remaining in the third quarter.

After outscoring the Colonials in the third period 25-21, Eastern Nazarene held a 78-67 lead at the start of the fourth quarter.

The Lions began the fourth with seven points in a row to push their advantage to 85-67 with 9:15 left to play in regulation.

Western Connecticut State pulled to within 10 with 5:12 remaining as Nicole Mierzejewski drained a trey, 89-79.

Eastern Nazarene converted 5-of-6 shots from the free throw line in the final minute of play to secure a victory over the Colonials in the first-ever meeting between the two teams.

The Lions finished with a field-goal percentage of 57.1% to go with 30.8% shooting from long distance. Western Connecticut State shot 30.6% from the floor on the night and just 22.6% from beyond the arc.

Eastern Nazarene's 102 points on the evening sets a new single-game program record, besting the previous mark of 95 points achieved in a December 9, 2014 win over Endicott.

The Colonials' Jancy Sherwood led all players with a game-high 33 points off the bench as she sank seven three-pointers in the contest.

Up next, Eastern Nazarene will return to Auerbach Arena November 18 to face the host Judges in the championship game of the Brandeis Tip-Off Tournament.