Wyland leads Panthers in loss to league-leading Owls

            PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Keene State College used a stifling defense to spark a 17-0 run over the last four minutes of the second quarter to pull away from Plymouth State University, 63-47, in a Little East Conference (LEC) women's basketball game at Foley Gymnasium on Wednesday.

            The Panthers got a strong performance from senior Kayla Wyland (Melrose, Mass.), who finished with team-highs of 14 points and eight rebounds.  Keene State had three players finish in double-figures, led by junior Sandi Purcell (Hudson, N.H.), who finished with a game-high 15.

            The league-leading Owls led from wire to wire.  Plymouth State kept things close through the first 14 minutes and trailed by just four points, 21-17, with six minutes to play in the second quarter when the visitors took control.

THE BASICS

  Foley Gymnasium, Plymouth, N.H. – Wed., Jan. 18, 2017

  Plymouth State 47, Keene State 63

  Records:

  Plymouth State 4-10 (1-5 LEC); Keene State 11-5 (5-1 LEC)

PSU LEADERS

  * Wyland … team-highs of 14 points (7-of-13) and eight rebounds

  * Sophomore Jess Conant (Canton, Maine) … seven points, two rebounds

  * Senior DeAsia 'Ace' Lawrence (Middletown, Conn.) … seven points, two rebounds, three assists

  * Sophomore Kailyn Aguiar (Acushnet, Mass.) … seven rebounds

KSC LEADERS

  * Purcell … game-high 15 points, three rebounds

  * Senior Stephanie D'Annolfo (Tyngsborough, Mass.) … 13 points, four rebounds, two assists

  * Sophomore Emily McPadden (Tyngsborough, Mass.) … 11 points, five rebounds, two assists

  * Senior Amanda Petrow (Methuen, Mass.) … six points, game-high 10 rebounds

BY THE NUMBERS

  * The Panthers were limited to 29.6% from the field (16-of-54), while Keene State ended 24-of-63 (38.1%).

  * The Owls controlled the interior, outrebounding the home team 45-31 and holding a 28-20 scoring advantage in the paint.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Quarter:

  * Keene State ran out to a 12-4 lead over the first four minutes, with Purcell connecting twice from beyond the arc.

  * Wyland sank a jumper from the right elbow to cut the margin to 16-11 with 2:23 remaining in the opening period.

  * Junior Lydia Vital (Cambridge, Mass.) made one-of-two from the charity stripe for the Owls, before sophomore Cassidy Emerson (Concord, N.H.) drained a baseline jumper to make it 17-13 at the end of the first quarter.

Second Quarter:

  * PSU got free throws from Lawrence and senior Leah Swanson (Atkinson, N.H.) to make it a 21-17 margin four minutes into the second quarter.

  * The Owls answered with a 17-0 run to push the lead to double-digits.  Purcell hit a tough runner in the lane then completed the old-fashioned three-point play before McPadden swished a pair of threes from the right wing. 

  * Purcell added a fast-break layup ahead of three-pointers from Vital and freshman Rachel Bonnanzio (Middlebury, Conn.) for KSC to close the half with a 38-17 lead.

Third Quarter:

  * D'Annolfo hit a layup off a pretty feed from Petrow to balloon the lead to 30, 49-19, with just under six minutes left in the third quarter – the Owls' largest lead of the game.

  * The Panthers went inside to Wyland on consecutive trips, and a straight-on three from Lawrence made it 51-26 with 3:40 remaining in the quarter, but McPadden answered with her third long ball.

Fourth Quarter:

  * The Panthers turned in a strong effort in the final quarter, picking up the defensive intensity while limiting KSC to just five points in the frame.

  * Conant made a tough interior jumper and converted the three-point play from the free throw line to make it 61-40 with 4:35 remaining.

  * A three-pointer from junior Elisabeth Caron (Londonderry, N.H.) made the final score 63-47.

NEXT UP

  * Plymouth State will face another LEC opponent on Saturday when the Panthers host Rhode Island College (1:00 p.m.).

  * Keene State will look for its sixth straight win when it hosts the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.

-- 30 --