QUINCY, Mass.- The Endicott women's basketball team stepped it up in the second half en route to a 59-47 road victory in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action Saturday afternoon inside the Lahue Physical Education Center.
With the win, the Gulls improved to 10-7 overall, 8-2 in conference play, while Eastern Nazarene fell to 10-7, 5-5 CCC on the season.
The Gulls got on the scoreboard first with junior forward Sarah Hood's (Burlington, Mass.) layup with 8:31 to play in the first quarter for the first points of the game.
Eastern Nazarene answered with a three-pointer by senior guard Jasmine Mata (Santa Barbara, Calif.) at 7:45 and a layup from junior guard Celina Calderon (Lompoc, Calif.) at 7:11 to take a 5-2 lead.
Hood responded with a jumper at 5:37 to score four of Endicott's six points in the opening quarter.
The Lions went on a 6-0 run for the remainder of the first quarter until sophomore guard Gabriella Coppola (Watertown, Mass.) hit a jump shot as the quarter came to a close with Endicott trailing, 11-6.
Endicott regained the lead on senior guard Kelsey Cuddy's (Madison, Conn.) layup with 3:38 left in the first half to go up 16-15.
Coppola led the floor with six points in the first half as the Gulls held a narrow 19-17 advantage heading into the break.
The third quarter saw two ties early on at 19-all and 21-all before the Gulls took control with senior guard Caity Lowry's (Quincy, Mass.) pair of free throws sunk at the 7:37 mark to give the Gulls a 23-21 edge.
Endicott was able to grow its lead to 39-30 at the end of the third quarter thanks in part to a 20-point effort from six different Gulls contributing and tacked on another 20 points in the fourth quarter as Endicott built their largest lead of the game (16 points) with 2:24 left in the game.
Coppola scored a career-high 14 points to lead the Gulls, in addition to pulling down four rebounds, dishing out four assists and recording three steals.
BEYOND THE BOX
- The Gulls scored just six points in the first quarter, tied for their lowest total in a single quarter this season (6 in the first quarter home vs. Roger Williams on Jan. 7, 2016).
- Endicott held the Lions to just six points in the second quarter, for the third lowest total allowed in a single quarter this season.
- The Gulls held their opponent under 10 points in a single quarter for the eighth time this season.
- Endicott placed two more student-athletes in double figures as Hood chipped in 13 points and a game-high nine rebounds and Cuddy added 10 points, six rebounds, one assists, three steals and one block.
- The Gulls went 0-for-4 from three-point range, for the first time this season with zero made three-pointers.
FOR THE FOES
- Sophomore guard Jaysa Cooper (Frisco, Texas) led the Lions with 12 points and six rebounds.
- Senior forward Elia Salazar (Los Angeles, Calif.) grabbed a team-leading eight boards to go with four points.
- 15 of the Lions' 23 turnovers occurred in the first half.
- Eastern Nazarene out-rebounded the Gulls 38-37.
NOTES
- Endicott is 19-5 all-time and 7-5 on the road at Eastern Nazarene dating back prior to the 2002 season.
- The Gulls have won seven of the last eight meetings against the Lions.
- In the most previous meeting before today, Endicott downed ENC, 69-51, on Dec. 5, 2015 in Beverly, Mass.
WHAT'S NEXT
Both teams return to action on Wednesday, January 27 as the Gulls (10-7, 8-2 CCC) host Nichols College at 5:30 p.m., while Eastern Nazarene (10-7, 5-5 CCC) takes on Curry in Quincy, Mass. at 7:00 p.m. For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.