Curry Uses Strong Second Half to Outlast Women's Basketball

MILTON, Mass. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology women's basketball team suffered a 63-51 defeat at Curry College on Wednesday evening inside Katz Gymnasium.

In an evening matched first quarter, the Colonels pulled away with a 4-0 run to lead 11-7, but Wentworth quickly erased the deficit and used three straight points from seniors Michelle McCloskey (Madison, Conn.) and Francesca Matira (Ledyard, Conn.) to even the score 11-11. With three seconds left in the first frame, senior Molly Plunkett (Quincy, Mass.) sank a three-pointer to give the hosts a 14-11 advantage, which turned into a 16-11 lead two minutes into the second quarter. The Colonels held on to the five-point gap throughout the half, until sophomores Stephanie Mini (Topsfield, Mass.) and Molley Duclos (Greenfield, Mass.) bucketed back-to-back treys for the Leopards, as Duclos' basket beat the buzzer to regain the lead, 29-28 at halftime.

Both teams traded buckets out of the break before Curry sparked an 11-2 run for a 41-33 lead following a layup by senior Emily Irwin (Billerica, Mass.). Plunkett again connected from long range and scored the final five of seven points to end the third as Curry stayed in front, 50-41. Curry held on to the double-digit lead throughout the final 10 minutes of play, despite a three-pointer from Mini with 1:22 to go.

Mini led the Leopards with 15 points, her fourth game in double figures, and pulled down seven rebounds. Classmate Erin Morton (Norway, Maine) had a solid line of nine points, seven boards, and six assists, while Duclos rounded out top rebounding with seven boards of her own.  

Curry (9-7, 6-2 CCC) had huge contributions from freshman Peyton Perine (Fairfax, Va.) and Irwin, who each recorded a double-double in the victory. Perine led all players with 21 points and pulled down 11 boards, while Irwin scored 20 points with 10 rebounds along with nine steals.  Each player bucketed eight baskets from the floor and shot 100% from the free throw line.

Wentworth (3-14, 1-7 CCC) returns to Tansey Gym for its next contest on Saturday for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off against Salve.

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