Gulls pull away late in win over AMCATS

PAXTON, Mass. (01.19.11) – Endicott senior Ashley Vitale (Wilmington, Mass.) had 19 points and five steals en route to eclipsing the 1,000th career points milestone, as the Endicott College women's basketball team defeated conference-foe Anna Maria College by the score of 75-45 at The Fuller Activities Center on Wednesday night. The AMCATS now drop to 6-10 overall and 0-4 in The Commonwealth Coast Conference, while the Gulls improve to 10-4 on the year and a perfect 4-0 in conference play.

Sophomore Allison McCarthy (Lynn, Mass.) led the AMCATS' offensive attack, scoring a team-high 18 points while knocking down four shots from beyond the arc. Junior Samantha Ashton added 10 points and seven rebounds, while sophomore Chelsea Blair (Holland, Mass.) grabbed 10 boards and blocked three shots in the loss.

Vitale knocked down 8-of-15 shots from the floor to spark the Gulls, while teammate Ashley Wright (Merrimack, N.H.) matched her for the game-high in both points (19) and steals (5). Wright also added five assists and three treys in the win, while freshman Samantha Crough (Cohasset, Mass.) earned a double-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

The AMCATS got off to a quick start, jumping out to a 7-0 lead as senior Emily Nugent (Worcester, Mass.) scored the first five points of the game.

The AMCATS were clinging to a 14-11 lead with under 11 minutes remaining in the period, when the Gulls erupted on a 17-2 run over the next six minutes of action to build an 11-point advantage.

Undeterred, the AMCATS battled back with a 13-2 run of their own to tie the score at 29-all, before the Gulls scored the final six points of the period to go into the break leading 35-29.

Anna Maria's Allison McCarthy led all players with 13 points in the first half, while the Gulls were paced by Vitale's nine points and three steals.

The Gulls came out of the break to score the opening six points of the second half, stretching their lead to 12.

However, the AMCATS refused to go away, clawing their way back to within five with less than 10 minutes remaining after Ashton, McCarthy, and Blair sparked an 8-1 run for Anna Maria.

That was as close as the AMCATS got to tying the game, as the Gulls closed out the win by outscoring Anna Maria by a 28-3 margin over the final nine and a half minutes of play to secure the 75-45 victory.

Both clubs return to conference action this Saturday at 1:00 pm, with the Gulls traveling to face Wentworth and the AMCATS hosting the University of New England.