Wellesley Basketball Bested by Worcester St. on Tuesday, 48-34

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Worcester St. junior Elizabeth Gallella (Tewksbury, Mass.) scored a team-high 10 points in a 48-34 win over Wellesley College on Tuesday night.

The loss drops Wellesley to 1-6. The Lancers get back to .500 at 4-4 with the win.

Gallella finished 5-of-8 from the floor and added seven rebounds. Senior Gigi LeMay (Grafton, Mass.) brought down a game-high 15 rebounds and scored six points. Nyah Thomas (Attleboro, Mass.) and Erin Gallella (Tewksbury, Mass.) each had nine points for the Lancers.

For the Blue, sophomore Anna Greenthal (Orinda, Calif.) recorded a game-high 11 points and added five steals. Classmate Elle Petra (Guilford, Conn.) finished with four points and eight rebounds. 

Both teams got off to a slow start offensively, with Greenthal tying the game at 2-2 at the 7:12 mark. The Blue would eventually take a 6-4 lead at the end of the first after Lily Forrester (Hamilton, Va.) made a lay-up as time expired. The Lancers opened up the second quarter on a 9-0 run capped off by a LeMay bucket. First year Allison Koziarz (New Rochelle, N.Y.) made a big bucket with 2:28 remaining in the half to cut the lead to 17-10. Worcester St. would add one more field goal to take a nine point lead into the half.

With the Blue trailing by eight in the second half, Taylor Hirn (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) made a corner jump shot off a dish by Jiyun Chae (Chantilly, Va.). Petra would follow up with a bucket of her own and the score was 21-17 at the 6:05 mark. Worcester St. would find its rhythm towards the end of the third, ending the quarter on a 10-3 run. Erin Gallella knocked down a pull-up jump shot with 11 seconds remaining and Worcester St. held a 32-23 lead. The offensive momentum carried over into the final quarter, as the Lancers took its largest lead of the game, 43-25, with 4:09 to play. The Blue were able to cut the deficit to 13 after a pair of free throws by Forrester, but the Lancers held on for the 48-34 final. 

The Blue held Worcester St. to 0-12 from three point land, but made just one as a team. The Lancers outrebounded Wellesley 47-34 and forced 33 total turnovers. The Blue struggled to contain the paint, allowing 26 points for Worcester St.

Up next, Wellesley will take on Hamilton on day one of the Ed Hockenbury Classic on Friday, December 3 at 8:00 PM. Worcester St. will remain on the road to face MIT on Saturday, December 4 at 3:00 PM.