PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Sophomore forward Nasha Arnold (North Reading, Mass.) scored eight of her career-high 17 points in the final five minutes to lead the Wheaton College (Mass.) women's basketball team to a 65-58 victory over host Johnson & Wales University (R.I.) this evening at the Wildcat Center in Providence, R.I.
The Lyons win their third straight to improve to 3-2 on the season, while the Wildcats fall to 1-3.
Wheaton shot just 34.5% (19-55) from the floor, but was very effective from three-point range, going 8-18 for a 44.4% clip. The Lyons were nearly automatic from the free throw line with 19 makes against just two misses for a 90.5% showing. Wheaton also made the most of its offensive rebounds, owning a 15-5 advantage in second chance points over its host. Johnson & Wales was held to just 33.3% (21-63) from the floor.
Arnold posted her first double-double of the season adding 11 boards to her career-best point total and made herself at home at the free throw line, converting 10 of 11 tries for the Lyons. She also handed out an assist. Sophomore forward Regan Keyter (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) netted 13 points, pulled down seven rebounds, blocked three shots and handed out and assist, while junior guard Abby Fernandes (Assonet, Mass.) chipped in with 12 points, including a trio of three-pointers on as many tries, and added six assists, three rebounds and a steal.
Senior guard Sarah Wisniewski (Waterbury, Conn.) topped the Wildcats with 17 points to go with six rebounds, an assist and a block and senior center Peyton Oliver (Plainfield, N.J.) contributed with 13 points, nine rebounds, two steals and a pair of assists. Sophomore forward Mikayla Caruso (Newton, N.J.) fell a rebound short of a double-double and scored 12 points in addition to a steal and a pair of rejections.
Oliver converted a pair of free throws to give Johnson & Wales a 53-49 lead with 4:54 to play in the game. Wheaton ripped off seven unanswered points as part of a 16-5 run to close out the contest, fueled by eight points from Arnold, to give the Lyons a 65-58 win.
The Wildcats scored the first four points of the game to spark a 14-6 start, including four points each from Wisniewski and Caruso, to take an eight-point cushion with 1:42 to play in the opening quarter. Arnold canned a pair of free throws before the end of the quarter to pull the visitors to within six at the end of the quarter.
Wheaton continued its momentum into the second quarter with six straight points, including back-to-back three-pointers from sophomore guard Madeline Duwe (Greenville, S.C.) and Arnold to knot the score at 14-14 with 6:52 left in the second period. It was the first of three ties before Fernandes buried a trifecta at the 4:36 mark of the quarter to give the Lyons their first lead of the night at 22-21.
JWU fought back with an 8-2 stretch to end the quarter and take a 29-24 lead into the intermission.
Wisniewski knocked down a jumper 51 seconds into the third quarter to give the Wildcats a 33-26 advantage, before Keyter scored the next five points to cut the deficit to 33-31 with 7:38 to play in the quarter for Wheaton.
Wisniewski later drained a pair of free throws to bump Johnson & Wales' lead to 40-36, before Arnold converted a layup and Keyter followed with a layup of her own with just one tick left on the third-quarter clock for the Lyons to make it a deadlock at the end of three quarters at 40-40.
Wisniewski rose to the occasion again for JWU with the first five points of the final quarter to give the home team a 45-40 cushion with 8:47 remaining in the game, before Peyton's free throws kept it a four-point game for the Wildcats at 4:54.
Wheaton returns to the court on Wednesday, November 29 when it travels to Weston, Mass. to take on Regis College for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off, while Johnson & Wales heads to New London, Conn. to play Connecticut College on the same night at the same time.
