BRISTOL, R.I. – The Roger Williams University Women’s Basketball team secured a crucial conference win with a 61-48 victory over Curry College Wednesday evening. The Hawks improved to 7-5 in The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC) and clinched a spot in the TCCC playoffs with the win. Curry fell to 6-6 in the TCCC, tied for seventh with Western New England College.

The Hawks shook up their starting lineup, with Ari Renwick (Westwood, Mass.), Paige Congdon (Westwood, Mass.), and Kate Malenczak (Sayville, N.Y.) earning their first starts of the year. Coming off the bench for the first time this season, Alexandria Lanieri (Port Jefferson, N.Y.), Carly Spagnola (Millbrook, N.Y.), and Ryan Weekes (Worcester, Mass.) contributed 35 of the Hawks’ 41 bench points in the game. Lanieri finished with a double-double (12 pts., 11 reb.), while Weekes scored 13 and Spagnola going for ten.

Curry started off the game strong, with a three-pointer by Ashley Assarian (Chicopee, Mass.) sparking a 7-0 run to begin the contest. Roger Williams would go on to score the next eight points, capped off by a fast-break layup by Weeks with 13:15 to play in the half.

The game would be a close-knit contest over the next four minutes when the Colonels broke a 16-all tie with a 9-0 run over the next three minutes of play to regain the lead. The Hawks would ultimately come back to tie the game at 25 en route to a 29-27 halftime lead.

In the second half, Roger Williams maintained its lead throughout the period despite Curry’s continued efforts to claw away at the deficit. Over the first seven minutes of the period, the Hawk lead hovered between three and ten. From there, Roger Williams continued to pace the game with timely baskets and key stops. The Hawks could not pull away from Curry, yet the Colonels were unable to get over the hump and regain the lead.

The Hawks’ defense proved to be a force in the paint over the game, finishing with a season-best 13 blocks against Curry, four of which came from Lanieri.

For Curry, Assarian scored 10 points with three rebounds. Julia Scrubb (Stowe, Vt.) led the team in scoring with 13 off the bench and five rebounds. Cortney Robinson (Brockton, Mass.) nearly went for a double-double, going for eight points and nine rebounds.

Roger Williams (14-9, 7-5 TCCC) closes out the regular season at home on Saturday with a 1:00 p.m. matchup against Eastern Nazarene College. Curry (17-7, 6-6 TCCC) plays at Endicott College on the same day and time. (Game recap courtesy of Roger Williams Sports Information)

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