Feeney Hits 1,000 as Bears Down UMass, 68-44

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Senior forward Colleen Feeney (Providence, RI) posted her 12^th double-double of the season and also scored her 1,000^th career point to lead the Bridgewater State College Bears to a 68-44 victory over UMass Boston this evening from the Tinsley Center.

With the win BSC improves to 10-3 on the season as they have won three straight games.  UMass slips to 6-7 overall.

Feeney knocked home her milestone basket with 3:59 remaining in the contest, a lay-up off a feed from freshman guard Corey Cuddihy (Scituate, MA). Feeney finished with game-highs of 23 points, 14 rebounds and 5 blocked shots.

Bridgewater State senior guard Justine Farroba (North Attleboro, MA) chipped in with 13 points, 5 steals, and 3 assists while her classmate Melissa Murphy (Rockland, MA) had a great all-around game with 10 points, a career-high 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals.

Bridgewater State held a slim 20-19 advantage with 4:04 minutes left in the first half. The Bears then ended the half on an 11-2 scoring run and took a 31-21 lead into the locker room.

UMass opened the second half on a 9-1 run to cut the deficit to 32-30.  The Beacons limited the Bears to just one point over the first 4 ½ minutes of the stanza.  That, however, would be as close as UMass would get in the game. Bridgewater answered back with a 9-2 scoring run of their own (42-31), including six points from Feeney, and the Bears held UMass Boston to 13 points over the final 13 minutes of play.

UMass connected on just 14 of 60 field goal attempts (23%) thanks in part to 12 blocked shots by the Bears.  The Beacons also turned the ball over 27 times, including 19 in the first half.

The Beacons were led by junior forward Leanne Meninger (Everett, MA) who scored 12 points while she corralled seven rebounds. Senior forward Stephanie Vasquez (Salem, MA) added 12 points for UMass.

Both teams play league contests on Saturday afternoon at 1 PM. Bridgewater State College will host Framingham State in MASCAC action, while Umass Boston travels to Keene State for a Little East Conference contest.