WBB: Lasers Down Eastern Connecticut in Home Opener

Newton, MA - The Lasell women's basketball team hosted Eastern Connecticut State University on Tuesday night in their home opener for the 2024-25 season. 

The Lasers previously faced the Warriors of ECSU on the road last year to open their season and fell in an OT loss 80-72. Now at home, the Lasers looked to avenge their loss from last season. In an eventful opening half, it was a back-and-forth contest with no team leading by double digits at any point and five lead changes. The Lasers captured the biggest lead of the half at the beginning of the second quarter where they had an 8-2 run capped by an Alexis Bulson-Cuozzo steal and fast break bucket to give the Lasers a 30-22 advantage. However, the Warriors would respond with a 15-6 run of their own to put them up 1 (37-36) with less than 30 seconds to go in the first half. A 3-pointer by Kiara Cerruti on the Lasers' final offensive possession of the half put them up by 2 going into the break.

In the second half, there were a number of more ties and lead changes as neither team could truly pull away. The Lasers had multiple leads of 8 points, matching their number from the first half. Down the stretch, the Lasers held the slight edge with a 77-70 lead going into the final 3 minutes. The Warriors found a way to narrow this gap though as back-to-back possessions they got baskets inside the paint to bring it to a one-possession game. The corresponding possession for the Lasers had them needing a bucket badly to push the game to two possessions once again. It was sophomore guard Shirle Major who stepped up in this moment with a nice finish giving the Lasers the five-point edge. She followed up with two clutch free throws on the next offensive possession and the Lasers held on to win 83-78. 

Both Shirle Major and Kiara Cerruti had big baskets all night for Lasell as they led the team with 22 & 23 points each. Laura Johnson also provided a spark on the glass as she tallied a game-high 12 rebounds. As a team, the Lasers also had an effective shooting night as they shot 53.3% from the field and 43.8% from behind the arc. 

Up Next - The Lasers take a trip to southern Mass. to take on the Lancers of Worcester State on Saturday at 1 PM.