NEWTON, Mass. (11/26/13) – The Lasell College women's basketball team scored a come from behind victory over Western New England University, 52-51 on Tuesday evening. A Katie Stopera three pointer with 1:18 left in the second half, put the Lasers in front by one, and they recorded a pair of stops down the stretch to capture the win. The Lasers improved to 3-3 on the season with the victory, while the Golden Bears slipped to 3-3 overall.
Lasells' Katie Stopera (Hollis, N.H.) led all scorers with 20 points on 7-16 shooting, including 3-7 from three point territory. Kayla Vincelette (Westport, Mass.) added 10 points, four rebounds and four assists for the Lasers, Sammy Long (Staten Island, N.Y.) chipped in with nine points off the bench and Danielle Autencio (Montville, Conn.) grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds.
Nicole Daly (Massapequa, N.Y.) paced Western New England with 13 points, Samantha McCann (Warren, Mass.) added eight points and Chelsea Vujs (Berlin, Conn.) chipped in with six points and eight rebounds.
Western New England opened up a 14-7 lead midway through the first half, before a pair of baskets by Stopera and a layup by Long stopped the run, making it 14-13 with 11:30 remaining in the opening half. The Golden Bears broke open a 20-19 game with a 10-0 run beginning with 2:30 left in the half, taking a 30-19 lead before a pair of free throws by Vincelette made it 30-21 at the intermission.
Western New England held a 39-30 advantage with 12:39 left in the contest before Lasell went on an 11-2 run fueled by eight straight points by Vincelette to tie the game at 41-41 with just over eight minutes left in the game. The two teams traded baskets over the next couple of minutes, with Lasell taking their first lead since it was 2-0 on a jumper by Breanna Williams (Bloomfield, Conn.) made it 47-45 with 5:42 remaining.
Western New England answered with a three point play by Nicole Daly to go back in front 48-47, but a Sammy Long jumper with 2:27 remaining put Lasell ahead 49-48. Katie Eckert (Lee, Mass.) countered with a three pointer for WNE to go on top 51-49 with 1:44 to play, setting the stage for Stopera's game-winning trifecta.
Western New England will return to action on Wednesday December 4th at 5:30 p.m. when they square off with Curry College, while Lasell will visit Fitchburg State on Tuesday December 3rd for a 7:00 p.m. matchup with the Falcons.