Women’s Basketball Silences Salve Regina In Overtime, 63-59

BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott women's basketball team picked up a crucial 63-59 overtime victory against conference foe Salve Regina University on Tuesday night at MacDonald Gymnasium.

Gabriella Coppola (Watertown, Mass.) filled up the stat sheet with 16 points, five rebounds, five assists, one block and four steals. Her point, assist and steal totals were all game-highs.

The Gulls also saw Emily Pratt (Gardner, Mass.) compile 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two blocks, while Hannah Kiernan (Wenham, Mass.) added 12 points, five boards, and two swipes. Mikaela Rogers (Haverhill, Mass.) also chipped in with 10 points, three rebounds, and one steal.

In overtime, Coppola took over the contest as the senior guard scored six straight points for Endicott with layups in traffic at the 4:50 (55-53), 3:30 (57-55), and 1:44 (59-57) marks of the period, respectively. Pratt was then tasked with clinching the game at the free throw line and the sophomore guard was up to the task going 4-for-4 at the charity stripe with under 15-seconds remaining in the matchup. 

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Tonight's matchup featured 11 ties and five lead changes.
• Endicott snapped a two-game losing skid to Salve Regina tonight.
• The Gulls have won seven games in a row. It marks their longest winning streak since 2010-11 (eight games | 1/6/11 – 1/29/11).
• Endicott also erased a four-point deficit with 3:50 to go in the fourth via back-to-back layups at 3:33 and 2:35 to even the score at 50-50. Kiernan then canned a layup at 1:00 and Coppola knocked down one free throw for a 53-50 lead with 43-seconds left.
• The Gulls are one victory shy of tying the most conference victories in a season during the Brittany Hutchinson era (14-4 in 2013-14 | ECAC Champions | Hutchinson currently in her seventh season). 
• Endicott is currently third in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) standings).

FOR THE FOES

• Salve Regina forced overtime with an and-one-conversion from Kerri Beland (Attleboro, Mass.) with 37-seconds remaining in regulation.
• The Seahawks led by four with 3:50 to play in the fourth.
• Tara Burke (Londonderry, N.H.) and Mary Eden (South Kingstown, R.I.) both finished with 16 points.
• Burke also had seven rebounds and one steal, while Eden collected 10 boards, four assists, two blocks, and two steals.
• Ally Esielionis (Shirley, Mass.) produced 11 points, six rebounds, and one block. 

WHAT'S NEXT 

Endicott (15-9, 13-4) closes out the 2017-18 regular season against Roger Williams this Saturday at 1 PM on the road. Salve Regina (12-11, 9-8 CCC) hosts Gordon this Saturday at 1 PM. 

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(Photo Credit - Mike Connors)