SAINTS END SKID WITH BLOWOUT WIN AT ANNA MARIA

PAXTON, Mass.—The Emmanuel College women's basketball team got back to its winning ways on Saturday afternoon with a 75-54 victory over Anna Maria in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play in Paxton, Mass.

The win boosts the Saints to 15-6 overall and 6-1 in GNAC action, while the loss brings Anna Maria to 6-13 overall and 0-7 in league play.

EMMANUEL LEADERS

The Saints received a double-double of 17 points and 15 rebounds from Lena Negri (Arlington, Va.). Alexis Ezell (Acworth, Ga.) added 13 points off the bench, while Jen Chalk (Horseheads, N.Y.) and Sarah Higgins (Groveland, Mass.) finished with 10 points each.

AMCAT LEADERS

The AMCATS were paced by the duo of Lindsay Bond (Webster, Mass.) and Nicole Mareiro (Acushnet, Mass.), who both finished with 12 points each. Deja Taitt (Cambia Heights, N.Y.) added 10 points and matched teammate Christina Gauvin (Dudley, Mass.) with a team-high five rebounds. Taitt also dished out four assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Emmanuel and Anna Maria battled for control in the opening minutes of the first quarter, as the first five minutes saw four tied scores and one lead change. At the 2:48 mark Higgins hit a layup to by the Saints up by five and 30 seconds later teammate Maddie McLaughlin (Westerly, R.I.) drained a three for an eight-point advantage. Mareiro answered with a three-pointer for Anna Maria, but a final Emmanuel layup with under a minute left sent the Saints into the second quarter with a seven-point lead, 20-13.

The Saints would use the first four minutes of the second frame to build a double-digit lead by holding the AMCATS to just seven points. Emmanuel held a 37-20 advantage at halftime.

The third quarter was a high-scoring affair, as both teams topped their first-quarter scoring. Emmanuel won the quarter with a 23-19 advantage in the scoring column. Bond scored half of her total points in the third quarter alone for Anna Maria, while Negri netted seven-points for Emmanuel, who led 60-39 after three.

An evenly-matched fourth quarter, 15-15, allowed the Saints to maintain their 21-point margin to cruise to their sixth GNAC win of the season.

FINAL COMPARISONS

Emmanuel posted a 39.7 percent shooting effort (29-73) to top Anna Maria at 31.5 percent (17-54). The Saints held a 50-16 lead in points in the paint, a 20-9 edge in points off turnovers, and a 20-6 performance in second-chance points.

The AMCATS were also outrebounded on the day 53-32.

WHAT'S NEXT

Anna Maria embarks on a two-game road streak as they travel to Albertus Magnus and Wetern Connecticut on Tuesday and Thursday this week before hosting Simmons next Saturday at 1:00 p.m. The Saints will enjoy a week off before visiting the Bluejays of Saint Joseph (CT) on Saturday, Feb. 6 at 1:00 p.m.