Eastern Connecticut 66, Worcester State 44
Worcester, MA --- Eastern Connecticut freshman Tanisha Carter (East Hartford, CT) tallied a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds to help lead the Warriors to a 66-44 triumph this evening over Worcester State in non-conference women's basketball action.
ECU (8-3) was also paced by junior Brittany Whiteley's (Ashford, CT) 11 points while classmate Jessica Moriarty (East Haven, CT) notched 9 points with 5 boards and 4 assists.
Junior Alexis George (Worcester, MA/Holy Name) scored a game-best 13 points to go along with 3 assists for the Lancers (6-5) while senior Bri Flanders (Southampton, MA) chipped in with 9 points and 8 caroms.
Eastern Connecticut dominated the boards as they nearly doubled up Worcester with a 49-26 total rebounding advantage and a 16-5 edge off the offensive glass. The Warriors also controlled the paint as they held a 34-14 lead in the category.
With the game knotted 5-5 four minutes into the game, ECU went on a 14-2 run to jump ahead 19-7 with 11:46 left. The Lancers got within striking distance at eight points at 7:39 (25-17) and again at nine points 90 seconds later (28-19), but Eastern Connecticut went on an 11-3 spurt as they took a 39-22 lead into the locker room.
The Warriors would maintain a double-digit for the rest of the contest. The closest Worcester State got was 13 points (44-31) at 15:28, but ECU would outscore WSC 8-0 over the next 4½ minutes to jump ahead 52-31. The visitors largest lead was 25 points (64-39) with 2:47 remaining.
Eastern Connecticut shot a blistering 50 percent from the field in the opening stanza (15-for-30), but fizzled in the final period as they were held to 36 percent (11-for-31) and 25 percent from three point land (3-for-12).
The Lancers connected for 32 percent from inside the arc for the entire contest (18-for-56). Despite only making 8 total field goals in the second half, they were only outscored 27-22 in the final frame.
Both teams will play conference opponents on Saturday. Worcester State opens up MASCAC play with MCLA at 3 PM while Eastern Connecticut entertains UMass Boston at 1 o'clock.