Owls Soar Past Falcons in Season Finale

Fitchburg, Mass.  – The Fitchburg State women's basketball team dropped a 79-54 decision to the Owls of Westfield State in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action on Saturday afternoon at Parkinson Gymnasium.

In a pre-game ceremony, the women's basketball team recognized senior Lindsay McDonald (Stoughton, Mass.) for her contributions to the program over the last four years.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 54, Westfield State 79
Records: Fitchburg State (3-22, 1-11 MASCAC) | Westfield State (16-9, 9-3 MASCAC)

How It Happened

1st Quarter

Westfield State opened with five unanswered points, however, the Falcons countered with a three-pointer from Rylie Harlow (Hanson, Mass.) and a pair of free throws to knot the game at 5-5. Harlow kept the game close (9-8) with a jumper in the paint. The Owls ran off eight straight including five points from Jordyn Lummus (Pittsfield, Mass.) to end the quarter.

2nd Quarter

The teams traded buckets to start the second period. Junior Jordan Grant (Gray, Maine) scored for Westfield while Kathryn Hart (Shirley, Mass.) had a jumper at the elbow for the Falcons. Westfield extended the lead (23-10) with a layup from Maddie Pond (Holyoke, Mass.) before

Stephanie Hart (Shirley, Mass.) connected on a jumper. The Owls close out the frame with a 7-0 run.

3rd Quarter

Westfield's Olivia Hadla (Westfield, Mass.) scored the first seven points of the frame. A bucket and a pair of free-throws from Stephanie Hart made it a 44-21 ballgame. Harlow knocked down back-to-back jumpers for the Falcons before the Owls hit five points from the charity stripe. Newcomer Octaviana Williams (Springfield, Mass.) converted a three-point play to push the score to 67-30.

4th Quarter

Caileen Hurley (Whitman, Mass.) knocked down a jumper and Olivia Almeida (Wilmington, Mass.) drained a trey from the corner for the Falcons to cut into the lead (72-35).  Williams added a jumper and a layup to extend the Owls' advantage. The Falcons responded with back-to-back three-pointers from first-year Aliza Som (Lowell, Mass.) and Prentis. Almeida closed out the game with three straight from beyond-the-arc for the Green and Gold.

Inside the Numbers

• Almeida paced the Falcons with 12 points, while Stephanie Hart chipped in with 9 points and 14 rebounds
• Grant and Williams paced the Owls with 15 points each, Williams added a game-high 7 steals
• Westfield State shot 27-for-85 (31.8%) from the field and (7-for-42) 16.7% from three-point range
• Fitchburg State finished 18-for-48 (37.5%) overall and (8-for-18) 44.4% for beyond the arc
• The Falcons held a 56-38 advantage on the boards

Up Next

The Falcons have completed the 2022-23 campaign.