Ashlyn Bill Blocked Seven Shots, but Women's Basketball Fall to Worcester State

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – The MCLA Women's Basketball team wrapped up their regular season this afternoon against Worcester State at the Amsler Campus Center Gymnasium. It has been a tough season for the Trailblazers, but the team has continued to put out the same level of effort all season and entered play this afternoon with an opportunity to sneak into the MASCAC playoffs with a victory and a Fitchburg State loss. The game was also not without stakes for Worcester State, who, with a loss, would be vulnerable to losing their seeding should Fitchburg defeat the MASCAC-leading Framingham State.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Saturday, February 17, 2024
• Score: Worcester State 77, MCLA 35
• Records: Worcester State Lancers 5-20 (MASCAC 4-8) | MCLA Trailblazers 4-21 (MASCAC 1-11)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Worcester State led the game from wire to wire, opening the game on a 19-3 run that included nine points from Katie Hurynowicz. The second quarter went much the same as the first, with the Lancers scoring 16 straight points between MCLA's Zaylee Ramos converting a free throw on a plus-one situation 43 seconds into the quarter and a pair of made free throws from Ramos with only 20 seconds left in the half. During that 16-0 run, Worcester's Lena Waldron scored 10 points on a perfect four for four from the field. The Lancers took a 40-12 lead into the halftime locker room.
• In the second half, the Trailblazers did show some resilience, outscoring the visitors in the fourth quarter by a 13-10 margin. Laney Martin hit a three from the corner with just under nine minutes to play to kick off an 11-6 run that was capped by another free throw from Ramos.
• Ramos finished the game with a team-high 15 points and three steals. She was also part of a quartet of players with four rebounds for MCLA. The others are Eva Eberwein, Hailey Peabody, and Ashlyn Bill.
• In addition to sharing the team lead in rebounds, Bill finished the game with a career-high seven blocked shots. the Trailblazers tied their season high of eight blocks set against the University of St. Joseph on December 11^th. Bill's block total was the highest by an MCLA player since Erika Ryan blocked 11 shots against Bridgewater State on January 11, 2020.
• Worcester had a notable quartet of their own, with four players finishing with double-digit scoring totals, led by a game-high 16 points from Hurynowicz. Waldron finished with 15, while Alana Smith added 14 points in 19 minutes off the bench and pulled down a game-high nine rebounds. The quartet was rounded out by Cameron Watkins' 12 points to go with eight rebounds.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Field Goals / %: WSU 33-77 / 42.9%, MCLA 12-49 / 24.5%
• 3 Points / %: WSU 2-6 / 33.3%, MCLA 3-10 / 30%
• Free Throw / %: WSU 9-16 / 56.3%, MCLA 8-12 / 66.7%
• Rebounds: WSU 55, MCLA 28
• Points off Turnovers: WSU 34, MCLA 4
• Second Chance Points: WSU 17, MCLA 7
• Points in the Paint: WSU 42, MCLA 12
• Bench Points: WSU 26, MCLA 5

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