Women's Hoops Falls to Salem State, 78-60

Box Score

SALEM, Mass -- Senior Danielle Jenkins (Marlborough, MA) scored a game-high 24 points in her final regular season home game to lead the Lady Vikings to an impressive 78-60 victory over league-leader Bridgewater State Tuesday night at Twohig Gymnasium.

Jenkins, who ranks second all-time in career scoring at Salem State, shook off an 0-5 start from the field, and scored 17 of her points in the second half, as the Lady Vikings turned a close game into a rout. 

Salem State used the game to promote the The WBCA Pink Zone, which is a unified effort for the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's (WBCA) nation of coaches to assist in raising breast cancer awareness on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond.

The win improved SSC to 17-7 overall and 8-3 in Masachusetts State College Athletic Conference (MASCAC) play. The Bears fell to 13-10 on the season and 9-2 in the MASCAC.

Salem State can tie for the league crown and the top seed in the MASCAC Tournament if it beats Worcester State on Saturday and BSC loses to MCLA.  A Bridgewater State victory over MCLA or a Salem loss to Worcester would give the Bears the MASCAC regular season title outright.

Salem State's six-point halftime lead was whittled to three, 43-40, after Michaela Cosby's (Walpole, MA) basket with just over 14 minutes remaining. Jenkins took things into her own hands, scoring five straight points - including a rebound follow of a missed Jakoya Wilkins' (Dorchester, MA) free throw, and SSC had its largest lead at that point, 48-40.

A conventional three-point play and two additional free throws by Whitney Wilson (Lowell, MA) gave the Lady Vikings their first double-digit lead, 53-42, and Jenkins added two more buckets to give SSC a comfortable 57-44 advantage. Salem State would eventually increase its lead to 20, 70-50, and cruised home to the win.

Jenkins was given a standing ovation when coach Tim Shea removed her after scoring her final points of the night. She finished 9-20 from the field, and added a game-high 15 rebounds to complete the dominant performance.

Freshman Brianna Wilson (Lowell, MA) had a solid game, scoring 18 points on 9-14 shooting. She added seven rebounds and tied for team-high honors with four assists. Erica Batchelder (Stoughton, MA), another freshman, had 14 points, as she connected on 4-6 from beyond the arc.

Bridgewater Stae was led by Michaela Johnson (Riverside, RI), who had 14 points, and Shelly DePina (New Bedford, MA), who posted a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds.

The Lady Vikings controlled the boards, 48-39, and held the Bears to just 36% shooting (25-70).

The first half was a back-and-forth battle featuring 11 lead changes. Salem State used a 5-0 run on the strength of four Jenkins free throws to take a 19-15 lead midway through the period. The Bears roared back, scoring the next nine points to claim their biggest advantage of the half, 24-19. DePina had a hoop and two free throws, and Monica-Sabina Bharoocha (North Smithfield, RI) converted consecutive buckets to lead the charge.

The Lady Vikings fought back, ripping off an 8-0 run to grab 27-24 advantage, and Batchelder drilled her third three-pointer of the half just before intermission to propel Salem State to a 36-30 lead heading into the locker room.