BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott women's basketball team improved to 4-1 in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) play with a 71-65 win over Western New England on Tuesday evening in MacDonald Gymnasium. 

The Golden Bears took an early 6-0 lead in the first quarter but the Gulls responded well and ended the quarter with a 15-12 lead. 

Endicott continued to pull away in the second as they went into halftime up 35-24. Western New England closed the gap in the third quarter, coming within four points at the close of the frame. 

The Golden Bears upped the pressure during the remaining minutes of play in the fourth and attempted a late comeback which saw them come within three points of the Gulls. Endicott, however, was able to hang onto the lead and secure the 71-65 victory. 

Cassandra Stapelfeld (Brookline, N.H.) recorded a career-high 20 points to lead the Gulls. Mikaela Rogers (Haverhill, Mass.) pulled down a team-high nine rebounds throughout the contest, while Sam Charette (Wenham, Mass.) was close behind with seven.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Emily Pratt (Gardner, Mass.) and Catie Lipscomb (West Springfield, Mass.) each tallied nine points. 
• Gabriella Coppola (Watertown, Mass.) led the team in assists with six. She is now tied for second on the all-time career assists list with 301 assists.
• Endicott was 16-17 (94.1%) from the free throw line
• The Gulls held a 46-33 rebound advantage.
• Endicott now leads the series with Western New England, 13-9.

FOR THE FOES

• Dorothy O'Neill (Staten Island, N.Y.) led all scorers with 33 points.  
• Meghan Gilhool (Montrose, Pa.) and Meghan Orbann (East Hampton, Conn.) each recorded six rebounds during the game. 
• Emily Farrell (New Fairfield, Conn.) had a team-high three steals and five assists.

WHAT'S NEXT 

Endicott (6-5, 4-1 CCC) travels to Gordon for a 5:30 p.m. matchup on Thursday, Jan. 11. Western New England (7-5, 3-2 CCC) hosts Curry on Thursday, Jan. 11 at 7:30 p.m.

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)