Sarah Hood's Career Night Leads Gulls Past Nichols, 86-61, To Open CCC Play

DUDLEY, Mass.- The Endicott women's basketball team came away with a 86-61 victory to open Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) play on the road versus Nichols College on Wednesday evening.

With the win, the Gulls improved to 2-2 overall, 1-0 in conference play, while Nichols dropped to (0-5, 0-1 CCC) in the home opener for the Bison.

The Gulls, who only trailed once in the contest, exploded from beyond the arc shooting 9-of-17 from downtown. Junior guard Ilyza Holman (Ashland, Mass.) made a career-high four 3-pointers to highlight Endicott's long distance shooting.

Junior forward Sarah Hood (Burlington, Mass.) paced the visitors with a career-high 17 points to go along with a career-high eight boards.

The Gulls put four student-athletes in double-figures tonight, the second-most this season (six vs. UMaine-Presque Isle) as senior guard Kelsey Cuddy (Madison, Conn.) had 16, while Holman tallied 12 points and sophomore guard Hannah Kiernan (Wenham, Mass.) chipped in 11 points to go along with Hood's team-leading night.

BEYOND THE BOX

• The Gulls' 86 points is the team's second-highest point total so far this season (94 vs. UMaine-Presque Isle)
• The Gulls' largest lead of the game 78-48 (30 points) came with 6:23 remaining in the fourth quarter on a Cuddy layup.
• Cuddy has recorded double-digit points in every game this season.
• Sophomore guard Gabriella Coppola (Watertown, Mass.) paced the Gulls with six of the team's 25 helpers.
• Endicott out-rebounded Nichols, 48-35.
• Freshman guard Mia Bellinghieri (Miami, Fla.) scored eight for her first career points.
• Freshman forward Emma Mancini (Lynnfield, Mass.) and freshman guard Catie Lipscomb (West Springfield, Mass.) made their career debuts tonight.

FOR THE FOES

• Junior guard Taylor Daniels (Dudley, Mass.) led the floor with 21 points on 9-of-20 from the field.
• Sophomore forward Allison Cerrato (Rockland, Mass.) had 16 points for the Bison.

NOTES

• Endicott is 18-5 all-time and 9-3 on the road against Nichols dating back prior to the 2002 season.
• The Gulls have won 10 of the last 11 against the Bison.
• In the most previous meeting before tonight, Nichols edged Endicott, 81-73 (OT) in Beverly, Mass. on Feb. 11, 2015.
• This was the second-largest margin of victory ever for Endicott over Nichols, as the Gulls defeated the Bison, 87-56, prior to the 2002 season.
• The last time the Gulls put up at least 86 points in a conference game was a 97-91 (2OT) loss to Western New England on Jan. 16, 2010.

WHAT'S NEXT

The Gulls (2-2, 1-0 CCC) will host Eastern Nazarene College on Saturday, December 5 at 1:00 p.m. Nichols (0-5, 0-1 CCC) travels to Wentworth for a 1:00 p.m. tip on Saturday, December 5 in Boston, Mass. 

For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.