Women's Hoops Picks Up Second-Straight NECC Win, 75-64 Over Lesley

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – A dominant second quarter spurred the Elms College women's basketball team to its second consecutive New England Collegiate Conference victory, a 75-64 win at Lesley on Saturday night.

The Blazers (3-9, 2-3 NECC) outscored Lesley (2-10, 2-3 NECC) 23-11 in the second quarter to take a 39-24 lead into halftime. Lesley cut into the Elms lead with an 8-0 run midway through fourth-quarter which trimmed the Elms advantage to 60-55 with 5:52 to play, but after an Elms timeout the Blazers scored the next four points, and Lesley never got any closer.

Elms freshman Regina Leblanc (Enfield, Conn. / Enfield HS) led the Blazers with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting and added seven rebounds. Senior Mackenzie LaRochelle (Chicopee, Mass. / Chicopee Comprehensive) also poured in 19 points for Elms after playing all 40 minutes. Kayla Soto (New Britain, Conn. / Classical Magnet) and Kayla Aberdale (Housatonic, Mass. / Monument Mountain Regional) each added nine points off the bench for Elms.

The Blazers committed just nine turnovers in the victory, the team's fewest turnover total since a 103-38 win over Lesley on Feb. 11, 2015 when Elms also finished with nine turnovers. The Blazers shot 37 percent from the field (25-of-67) in the game while Lesley hit 36 percent (23-of-64) of its attempts. Each team finished with 38 rebounds.

Lesley's Dakota Jones led all players with a 20-point, 17-rebound double-double. Jones hit 7-of-14 attempts and went 6-of-10 at the free throw line before fouling out. Elizabeth Portante (Littleton, Mass. / Littleton HS) added 17 points for Lesley, and McKenna Straube (Junction City, Ore. / Junction City) finished with 12.

The Blazers continue NECC play on Jan. 16 when Bay Path visits Picknelly Arena at 7:00 p.m. Lesley hosts Lyndon State on Jan. 14.