Springfield, Mass. – February 12, 2025 – The Springfield College women's basketball team used a 10-0 run to start the game and a 42-point first half to defeat Salve Regina, 76-72, in a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) matchup on Wednesday night in Blake Arena.
Springfield picked up its third-straight conference win of the season improving to 13-9 overall and 5-3 in NEWMAC play, while Salve Regina fell to 11-10, 4-4. Since joining the NEWMAC prior to the 2023-24 season, Springfield is a perfect 3-0 against the Seahawks.
Four student-athletes scored in double-digits for the Pride with
Amanda Leary (Westbury, N.Y.) leading the way with 21 points, six rebounds, two steals and three blocks.
Claire Finney (Haverhill, Mass.) chipped in 19 points, three rebounds and two assists and
Angie Czeremcha (West Springfield, Mass.) logged her eighth double-double of the season and third straight with 16 points and 13 boards.
Carrie Hess (Shrewsbury, Mass.) tallied 10 points and six rebounds, with
Kassidy Carrano (West Haven, Conn.) dishing out a career-high seven assists.
The Pride came out the gates hot in the first, quickly jumping to a 10-0 lead thanks to back-to-back threes from Finney and Carrano. Salve's Amanda Folan joined the 3-point party, connecting from behind the arc herself to put the Seahawks on the board. Both teams traded buckets before a last-second layup from Carrano found nylon to push Springfield's lead back to double digits, 20-10.
Finney continued her offensive explosion into the second quarter, knocking down a pair of free throws and converting an and-one to give herself 10 points in the game and Springfield a 25-14 lead with 8:16 left in the half. Four points from Carrano, an Leary trey and inside finish from Hess capped off a 9-3 run to give Springfield a 42-26 lead at the break – the Pride's most points in a half since putting up 43 against Albertus Magnus on December 14.
Salve Regina scored the first seven points of the third, until Leary connected on a long three with 8:01 left in the quarter. Despite the ensuing two possessions ending in made triples for Springfield, another from Leary and one from Carrano, and a buzzer-beating three from Finney, the Seahawks 27-point third quarter scoring barrage cut the Pride lead to just nine, 62-53, heading into the final ten minutes of action.
Salve Regina began the fourth on a 7-2 run in just under two minutes of gameplay, before a Czeremcha block and Finney free throw on the other end kept Springfield's lead at five. The Seahawks cut the Pride's lead to 67-64 with 4:50 remaining in the game, until four points from Leary and a layup from Czeremcha pushed Springfield's lead back to two possessions. Rourke connected again from downtown to keep Salve within striking distance, but steals from Hess and Carrano put the game on ice, the scoreboard reading in favor of Springfield, 76-72.
Springfield will host Babson College on Saturday at 3:00 pm in Blake Arena.
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(Recap Courtesy of Braedan Shea '25)
