AMHERST, Mass.– University of Massachusetts women’s basketball fell in a close 63-61 contest to La Salle on Wednesday morning at the Mullins Center. Senior Alexsia Rose and junior Kristin Williams reached double figures on the day with 18 and 15 points, respectively.
Rose matched a career-high with her point total, going 5-for-10 from the field and 8-for-9 from the free throw line. Williams went 5-for-14 from the field, including 3-for-7 from beyond the arc, while adding two free throw shots. Bre Bellamy and Stefanie Kulesza led the team in rebounds with six each, followed by Lilly Ferguson with five. Rose, Bellamy and Kulesza all registered three assists and Williams had two swipes.
After La Salle scored the first bucket of the game, UMass went on a 12-0 run, giving the team a 12-3 lead. Lilly Taulelei scored five points alone in the run, going 2-for-4 from the field. Stefanie Kulesza gave the Minutewomen an eight-point lead with a minute and 59 seconds left on the clock, before Tori Hyduke added to the total with a free throw, making it a 15-6 game. La Salle tallied five more points, while Massachusetts scored two to end the first quarter with a 17-11 Minutewomen lead.
The Minutewomen continued to pull ahead, going on an 11-0 run to start the second quarter to lead 28-14. Alexsia Rose put up 10 points in the quarter, going 3-for-4 from the field and making four of her five free throws. Six of Rose’s 10 points came in the run for UMass. The two teams traded nine points apiece, before the Explorers made two free throws with 35 seconds remaining in the half, but Massachusetts held on to the lead at 37-25.
Both teams kept the scoring close in the third, as Massachusetts held on to a 47-38 lead, while Rose totaled six points in the quarter. La Salle started the final frame on a 12-0 run to take a three-point lead at 50-47. UMass started a small run to reclaim the lead at 51-50 at the 3:16 mark, but the Explorers took back the lead at 58-53. With 15 seconds remaining, Williams knocked down a three to close the gap to one at 59-58, before hitting another triple to knot the game up at 61-61. La Salle was sent to the charity strip with four seconds left on the clock making both baskets to complete the game with a final score of 63-61.
UMass heads to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, February 3, for a 2 p.m. contest against Saint Joseph’s on ESPN+.