Women’s Basketball Falls to Gordon in CNE Opener

WENHAM, Mass. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology women's basketball team dropped the conference opener to Gordon on Wednesday night, 65-59. Taylor Garabedian's 19 points on 7-13 shooting, 13 rebounds and three steals led the team while Tita Rana had a career-high nine assists and six boards to go with seven points and six rebounds. Mia Luna Zayas scored 15 points and grabbed three rebounds and Elise Ayer scored 14 on 7-11 shooting to go with five rebounds and two steals.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Wentworth opened the game with scores on the first two possessions thanks to buckets from Ayer and Zayas. Gordon answered each make with a bucket of their own and took a 10-6 lead behind Sami Monighetti's three with just over seven minutes to play in the first quarter. The Leopards were held off the board for the next three minutes while the hosts stretched their advantage to 11 points. Garabedian's layup ended the scoring drought while Ayer and Zayas combined for seven points to bring Wentworth within four. Rana's layup in the final minute tied the game 19-19 while Wentworth's defense held Gordon scoreless for the final 3:18 of the first quarter.
• Garabedian knocked down a pair of free throws to give Wentworth the lead early in the second quarter before a triple from Woynitu Ciccarello put Gordon back in front by one. The Fighting Scots went on an 8-0 run to stretch the lead to nine with just under four minutes remaining in the half. Monighetti knocked down another three and hit two free throws in the last 30 seconds as Gordon took a 39-25 lead into the half.
• Garabedian led the team with 10 points in the first half. Rana tallied four assists and three points while Zayas and Ayer combined for 13 points in the opening 20 minutes.
• Gordon maintained their 12-point lead until Rana's layup cut the deficit down to 10 with three and a half minutes to play in the third. The Leopards got a big defensive rebound from Garabedian before a Kailee McPhillips jumper and driving layup from Ayer brought the visitors within six points. Gordon pushed the lead back to 10 before a three from Zayas kept Wentworth within seven points heading into the final frame.
•  The Fighting Scots scored the first five points of the fourth quarter to push the lead back to 12 points. Wentworth continued to battle but Gordon held a double digit lead as the game hit the final five minutes. Ayer hit a hook shot late in the game to make it 63-57, but the Leopards' comeback effort fell short as Gordon hit free throws down the stretch to close out the game and win the conference opener.

THE SERIES:

• Tonight was the 52nd all-time meeting between the two teams.

NEXT UP:

• Wentworth will travel to Vermont State University-Lyndon on Saturday.

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