Springfield College Stops Westfield State, 78-60

More news about: Westfield State

AMHERST, Mass. – Springfield College and Westfield State University played on the campus of Amherst College this afternoon to open day two of the 2010 Pioneer Valley Classic. Springfield led by 11 points at halftimes and pulled away early in the second half for a 78-60 victory.

On day one, the Owls of Westfield State dropped a 110-57 result to the host Lord Jeffs, while Springfield pulled out an 82-67 win over Elms College in the nightcap. With this weekend's results, Westfield falls to 2-4 on the year, while Springfield pushes above .500 for the season at 4-3 overall.

With 13:09 to play in the first half, Springfield senior Darvis Rankins knocked down a pull-up jumper to give the Pride a 12-8 lead. Through nearly eight minutes Rankins and Ryan Coburn were the only Springfield players to score, putting in all 12 of the team's points until Trevor DiMicco made a free throw with 12:03 remaining.

Springfield's lead remained at just four points until the 7:26 mark when Evan Christner finished off a three-point play on a Billy Harkins alley-oop. The Christner and-one put the Pride on top 22-15, but Westfield State's Andrew Morgan responded with a three-point play of his own on the next Owl possession.

At the half, Springfield held a 41-30 lead riding 11 points from Ryan Coburn and eight points from Rankings. Ryan White led the Owls with seven points in the first half. In less than seven minutes of second half action, the Pride stretched its lead to 50-35 on a score by Coburn.

In the final 13 minutes of the game, Westfield State never got closer than 15 points as Springfield cruised to the 78-60 win. For the day, Springfield's Matt Cavalieri led all players with 16 points and 11 rebounds for his second straight double-double. Eric Vargas scored a team-high 12 points for Westfield, while Eugene Turner and Marcellus Lee each scored 10 points.

For their play this weekend, Springfield's Cavalieri and Rankins and Westfield State's Eugene Turner were named to the All-Tournament Team.