WORCESTER, Mass. – Wellesley College basketball led for three quarters but ultimately came up just short in a 66-61 game at Worcester State University on Wednesday night.
Senior Lena Waldron (Quincy, Mass.) was the game's top scorer with 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting for the Lancers (1-2). Classmate Alana Smith (Chicopee, Mass.) put up 12 points with eight rebounds and three steals while junior Emma Quinn (Wakefield, Mass.) scored 10 points off of the bench.
The Blue (1-1) got 19 points and six boards from junior Ava Shane (Plano, Texas). Senior Trinity Barrow (Evans, Ga.) supplied 14 points, four assists and four steals. First-year Maya Motherway (East Rockaway, N.Y.) chipped in 11 points.
The first quarter was close throughout, with the Blue up 19-18 after one quarter of play. Sophomore Tanvi Agarwal (Woodinville, Wash.) hit a pair of threes in the period while Shane assisted on a trio of buckets. On the other side, Waldron registered nine first quarter points.Â
Both teams stayed within five points of one another for most of the second quarter. After trailing by one, Wellesley scored the final six points of the first half, including a pair of Motherway layups. As the horn sounded to end the half, the Blue led 40-35.
The hosts outscored the visitors 10-9 in a low-scoring third quarter. The Blue came out of the break with four points to take a 44-35 advantage. But the Lancers hung around all quarter, only losing by four, 49-45, with one quarter left to go.
Worcester State tied the game at 49-49 with 8:47 left on the clock. The teams alternated baskets with multiple ties as the time ran down. A jumper by Shane put Wellesley up 61-58 with only 65 seconds remaining. Smith hit a layup for the Lancers with 49 seconds left before a miss and a rebound gave the hosts the ball back. Quinn connected on a shot from behind the arc. A Blue miss led to foul shots going in from Waldron. A final miss and another Waldron free throw sealed the 66-61 victory for the hosts.
Next up, Wellesley heads to Elms College for a 1:00 PM tip-off on Saturday, November 14. The Lancers will remain home on Tuesday, November 17 to take on New England College at 7:00 PM.
