Boutilette Leads Women's Basketball to 99-86 Win over UMass Dartmouth

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – Senior forward Megan Boutilette (Charlton, Mass.) posted a double-double with 26 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Bridgewater State University women's basketball team to a 99-86 non-league win over visiting UMass Dartmouth on Sunday evening at the Tinsley Center.

The host Bears improve to 3-2 on the season with the victory, while the Corsairs slip to 3-3.

Boutilette also added six assists, two blocks and two steals to her game-high scoring and rebounding totals.  She connected on 11 of 17 field goal attempts, and seven of her 16 boards came off the offensive glass.

Senior guard Elisha Homich (Ludlow, Mass.) finished with 18 points, six assists, a  block and four steals for the Bears, while senior guard Jenna Williamson (Ludlow, Mass.) chipped in with 16 points on 5 of 7 shooting to go along with six rebounds and three assists.  Senior guard Colleen Hanscom (Methuen, Mass.) added ten points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.

The Bears received solid production from the bench with junior guard Melissa Daigle (Rockland, Mass.) leading the reserves with 14 points, six rebounds and four assists in 26 minutes of action.

Junior guard Kelsey Garrity (Somerville, Mass.) paced the Corsairs with 20 points, five rebounds and a game-high eight assists.  Freshman forward Megan Ronaghan (North Attleboro, Mass.) added 18 points on 8 of 11 shooting to go along with six rebounds and two blocks, while freshman guard Ashley Brown (Fairhaven, Mass.) notched ten points, three assists and two steals.

Sophomore guard Marisa McCabe (Cedar Grove, N.J.) and freshman guard Brianna Hochwarter (Attleboro, Mass.) both played very well off the bench for UMass.  McCabe tallied 16 points, six boards, four assists, two blocks and three steals in 29 minutes as she was 4-for-5 from three points range.  Hochwarter finished with 12 points on 4 of 9 shooting from behind the arc in 25 minutes.

The Bears jumped out to a 19-4 lead as they held the Corsairs to just two field goals over the first seven minutes.  UMass battled back over the next four minutes on the strength of some outstanding long-distance shooting as the visitors outscored the hosts, 21-8, during that stretch.  The Corsairs made 8 of 9 shots over that four-minute span and drained five three-pointers.  Garrity's trifecta at the 9:11 mark cut the deficit to 27-25.

Bridgewater responded with a 13-3 run over the next 4 ½ minutes to reclaim their double-digit advantage.  Williamson had seven points, including a three-pointer, during the run, while Boutilette started and ended the run with uncontested layups.  The Bears maintained a double-digit advantage until Hochwater drained a three with two minutes remaining in the stanza to make it a seven-point game.  The teams would head to the intermission with Bridgewater leading 51-44.

Bridgewater shot 44% (16-36) from the floor over the first twenty minutes but connected on just 2 of 9 three-point attempts.  The Bears had a decisive edge at the free throw line converting on 17 of 19 foul shots, while UMass went to the line only four times.  The Corsairs knocked down eight trifectas out of 14 attempts (57%) and shot 49% (17-35) from the floor in the first half.

Williamson, who moved into 13th place on the Bears' all-time scoring list (1,020 points), scored 14 points in the first half while Boutilette notched 13.  McCabe led the Corsairs with 11 points over the first twenty minutes.

The Bears were able to increase their advantage to 14 points (69-55) on a Daigle layup with 12:45 remaining in the second half.  A 13-1 UMass run over the next 2:47 highlighted by a pair of Brown trifectas made it a two-point game (70-68) as the clock ticked under ten minutes.

Bridgewater, however, answered with a 14-2 run of its own over a three-minute stretch and the Corsairs were unable to recover.  Homich drained a pair of three-pointers and notched two assists and a steal during the spurt while freshman guard Jennie Lindland (Edgartown, Mass.) added four points on a pair of driving layups.

Bridgewater shot 49% (36-73) for the game, including 54% (20-37) in the second half, and connected on 6 of 18 (33%) three-point tries (33%) and 21 of 26 (81%) free throw attempts.  The Bears assisted on 27 of their 36 made field goals and forced 19 turnovers thanks in part to 14 steals.

UMass went 5-for-14 (36%) from behind the arc in the second half and finished with 13 trifectas for the game.  The Corsairs shot 47% (33-70) from the floor for the game and made just 11 trips (7-for-11) to the free throw line.    

In upcoming action, Bridgewater will travel to Norwich University on Friday and Saturday for the Ed Hockenbury Classic. The Bears will take on Bates College at eight on Friday night in the tournament semifinals.  UMass travels to Brandeis University on Tuesday evening to take on the Judges at 7:30.