Lady AMCATS Soar Over Hawks, Bigelow Nets First Win

Leicester, Mass. --- Junior forward Kayla Cummings (Auburn, Maine) scored 19 points and pulled down 15 rebounds to lead Anna Maria College to a 60-51 victory over Becker College in non-conference women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon at the Leicester Gym, in a matchup of crosstown rivals. The AMCATS of Anna Maria pickup their first win of the season and earned first year head coach Kevin Bigelow his first collegiate career victory to climb to 1-4 while the Hawks of Becker drop to 0-5.

Cummings shot seven-of-ten from the floor. Sophomore guard Katie Pryor (Whitinsville, Mass.) filled out a stat line with 11 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals. Senior forward Chelsea Blair (Holland, Mass.) added six points, six rebounds and two steals.

Becker was led by junior guard Haley Ooms (Valatie, N.Y.), who poured in a game-high 23 points with eight rebounds and five assists while nailing three of six three-point attempts, playing the entire game. Junior forward Tarisha Renaud (Worcester, Mass.) came off the bench to pull down 11 rebounds in just 17 minutes off the bench. Junior guard Chelsea Joubert (Westborough, Mass.) added 13 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals. Freshman forward Gabrielle Gallo (Northport, N.Y.) chipped in nine points and seven rebounds.

Anna Maria opened the game with a 7-0 run, holding Becker scoreless for the first four minutes of the contest. The Hawks responded with an 8-3 stretch to pull within two, including a three-pointer from Joubert.  Despite the best efforts of Ooms (10 first-half points), the AMCATS would maintain the lead throughout the first half, answering the challenge whenever the hosts seemed poised to close the gap. Anna Maria went into halftime with a 34-25 lead, with Cummings setting the pace with 10 points. A determined AMCAT defense held the Hawks leading scorer, junior forward Tatiana Mojica (Worcester, Mass.), without a field goal attempt. Becker only managed seven points off of 18 offensive rebounds, while the AMCATS enjoyed a decisive 50 to 21.7 advantage in shooting percentage over the Hawks in the opening period.

The second half saw more of the same, as Anna Maria continued to find ways to make Becker play catch-up. Cummings was dominant on the boards at both sides of the court, pulling down ten in the second period alone. The teams played equally on the scoreboard and the stat sheet in the half, but the Hawks could never overcome their halftime deficit. 

Up next for Becker, the Hawks will begin NECC play when they host Elms College on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. Anna Maria will host SUNY Cobleskill on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.