Second Half Surge Propels Women’s Hoops to 70-45 Victory Over Fisher

QUINCY, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene College women's basketball team outscored Fisher 44-25 en route to a 70-45 win Friday evening at the Lahue Athletic Center.

The Lions rise to 2-0 on the season with the victory while the Falcons dip to 2-4 overall.

Janeth Cruz (Reseda, Calif.) scored a team-high 14 points on the night. Stevie Orton (Gilford, N.H.) notched a double-double with 13 points and a game-best 12 rebounds to go with five assists. Delaney Walker (Nampa, Idaho) splashed three treys to tally nine points in the contest. Alondra Jimenez (Santa Barbara, Calif.), Nahatabaa Nacona (Chinle, Ariz.), and Sydni Oviatt (Fruit Heights, Utah) all registered eight points.

After a closely-contested opening frame, the home side clung to a slim 9-8 lead.

Eastern Nazarene headed into the halftime intermission hanging onto a 26-20 advantage. The Lions shot 36.7% from the floor in the first two periods and connected on just 1-of-7 from three-point range. Fisher posted a field-goal percentage of 33.3% in the opening half.

The hosts extended the margin to 49-36 with a 23-16 advantage in third-quarter scoring.

Eastern Nazarene's largest lead of the game, 69-42, came with 2:31 remaining in the final frame as Oviatt canned a three-pointer from the left corner.

The Lions poured in 21 points in the fourth period while limiting the Falcons to just nine points to secure their second-straight win.

Eastern Nazarene finished with a field-goal percentage of 42.9% to go with 37.5% shooting from behind the arc. Fisher shot 29.8% from the floor on the evening and 13.3% from long distance.

Misha O'Neal racked up a game-high 27 points off the bench for the visitors while Alexia Mason paced the Falcons with eight boards.

Looking ahead, Eastern Nazarene and Fisher return to the hardwood March 6 to close out the series.