BOSTON, Mass. – Senior Olivia Deslauriers (West Hartford, Conn.) scored 20 points as the Emerson College women's basketball team held off a late comeback by Wentworth, 71-64, in the season opener for both teams.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

LEADING SCORERS:  Maddy Foster, 20; Nattaly David, 18; Gabby Amodio, 11
LEADING REBOUNDERS:  Amodia, 7; Foster, 7
ASSIST LEADERS:  Francesca Farrell, 4; Abriana Busbey, 3

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Emerson opened the game by scoring the first nine points before a senior Abrianna Busbey (Palmer, Alaska) layup put Wentworth on the board. A three-point play by sophomore Maddy Foster (Lewiston, Maine) brought the Leopards to within three at 12-9 and junior Nattaly David (Hyde Park, Mass.) drained a three with 2:35 left to knot the game at 12-all. The Lions scored the final five points of the frame to take a 17-12 lead after the one quarter of play.
• The Lions scored the first five points of the second quarter, taking a 22-12 lead on a senior Chelsea Gibbons (Foxborough, Mass.) layup 1:40 into the quarter. Sophomore Gabby Amodio (Wethersfield, Conn.) countered with a layup of her own to end the run, however, the hosts scored the next nine points and took a 31-14 lead on a Gibbons basket with 5:11 left. Emerson led by as many as 19 on two occasions, including on a sophomore Devin Hill (Edgartown, Mass.) jumper with 3:16 remaining, which made it 36-17. The Black & Gold used a 9-2 run to close out the half, with David hitting a three with 16 seconds left to close out the frame and pull the Leopards within a dozen (38-26).
• After the teams traded baskets to open the third quarter, David hit a three making it 40-31. Emerson built its lead to 11 with just under six minutes left but David countered with another three, making it 44-36 with 5:39 left. A three from sophomore Brooke Carlson (Contoocook, N.H.) and a layup from Amoddio brought Wentworth to within four (45-41) with 3:10 left. The Lions led, 52-43, after three quarters, ending the quarter on a 7-2 run.
• A layup from junior Ella Bushee (Walpole, N.H.) pushed the Emerson lead back to double digits (54-43) but a layup from sophomore Brianna Carroll (Douglas, Mass.) and a three-point play from Foster pulled Wentworth to within six (54-48). The Lions built their lead to 12 with 2:52 to play, however, an 8-0 run, capped off by a Busbey three-point play, brought Wentworth to within four (65-61) with 1:00 left. The hosts hit four straight free throws and led, 69-61, but Amoddio brought Wentworth within five when she hit a three pointer on the next possession. Deslauriers hit two free throws to extend the lead to seven with 15 seconds left.

NOTEWORTHY:

• Wentworth outscored Emerson in the second half, 38-33 and had 30 points off 23 Lions turnovers.

SERIES NOTES:

• Tonight 36th all-time meeting between the two teams. Winners of five in a row in the series, Emerson leads all-time, 19-17.

NEXT UP:

• Wentworth is idle until hosting Northern Vermont-Lyndon on Tuesday, November 15, at 6:00 p.m.

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