Springfield, Mass. - November 14, 2023 - The Springfield College women's basketball team played in Blake Arena for the first time this season and held off Endicott for a 61-56 victory in non-conference play.

The win boosts Springfield's record to 2-1 on the year, while the Gulls dipped to 0-2.

Amanda Leary (Westbury, N.Y.) poured in a career-high 19 points, including 14 in the first half, while  Rachel Vinton (Rutland, Mass.) turned in 13 points and 10 rebounds and Lindsey Laughlan (Ellington, Conn.) added a double double of her own with 11 boards and 10 points.  Angela Czeremcha (West Springfield, Mass.) also scored 10 points and hauled in eight rebounds as Springfield finished the game with a 44-33 edge on the glass.  Springfield was able to overcome 24 turnovers as it shot 20-for-25 from the charity stripe. 

Sarah Dempsey scored a game-high 27 points and Katelyn Konareski drilled five three-pointers off the bench en route to 19 points of her own.  After netting just 20 points in the first 20 minutes of play, Endicott outscored Springfield by a 36-26 margin in the second half. 

The hosts jumped out to an 8-0 lead at the 5:44 mark on an inside finish by Leary, only to have the visitors pull within 12-6 with just over 90 seconds to go in the quarter on a jumper by Dempsey. Leary would close out the frame with five unanswered points, including a corner three, to give Springfield a 17-6 cushion after 10 minutes of play.  Springfield limited the Gulls to just 3-of-17 shooting from the floor through the first.  

Vinton canned a deep two from the corner as the lead ballooned to 28-10 midway through the second quarter, but the Gulls would answer right back with a 10-2 push, as Dempsey drilled another jumper to force the Pride into a timeout with its lead trimmed to 30-20 with 1:23 left in the half.  However, Springfield would again close the frame on a 5-0 push, as Leary knocked down a three at the horn from the left wing to make a 35-20 contest, closing out a quarter where Springfield shot 58% from the floor.

After a three-point play by Czeremcha allowed Springfield to gain a 41-22 cushion with just over six minutes to play in the third, the Gulls closed out the stanza on a 10-3 push to make it a 12-point game heading into the fourth.  Endicott then scored the first seven points of the quarter, with a triple from the left wing by Konareski, pulling the Gulls all the way back to within 44-39 with just over eight minutes left in regulation. A three-point play from Dempsey would make it a one-score game at 52-49 at 4:02, only to have Leary and Laughlan answer with jumpers and Vinton tack on a freebie to push the lead back to 57-49.  Springfield would tack on 4-of-6 from the stripe down the stretch to seal the win. 

Springfield heads to Vermont this weekend to compete in the Middlebury Invitational, beginning on Friday versus St. Lawrence at 7 pm. 

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