Worcester, MA—Worcester State senior Julie Frankian (Millbury, MA) led all scorers with 20 points while junior Bianca Langford (Worcester, MA/Holy Name) recorded her fifth double-double of the season to help the host Lancers to a 60-55 victory over Johnson and Wales this evening in non-conference women's basketball action at Harrington Auditorium.

The Blue and Gold run their winning streak to four games and improve to 8-3 on the campaign while the Wildcats fall to 6-5 overall.

Senior Shannen El-Qasem (Rutland, Ma) turned in a solid game for the Lancers contributing 12 points and eight boards while freshman Allie Lake (Westport, MA) came off the bench to add seven helpers.

Freshman Raquel Pederzani (Coventry, RI) scored a team high 18 points and fellow classmate Ashley Thompson (Bellingham, MA) pitched in with 14 points and 13 caroms in the setback for JWU.

Sophomores Bobbie Whitehead (Brooklyn, NY) and Jordan Neylon (Penacook, NH) each added eight points for the Wildcats while also pulling in eight and eight rebounds, respectively.

The Lancers held a slim lead throughout the first half and used an 8-0 run late in the stanza to turn a narrow two point advantage into a 19-9 edge.

Langford and Frankian were the catalysts during the stretch with four points each as Frankian's lay-up with 4:22 left in the opening frame capped the flurry for the hosts.

JWU showed resiliency to pull within 19-16 with a 7-0 spurt over the next two minutes. Thompson had a pair of buckets and freshman Kristen Habbel (Phoenixville, PA) ended the rally with a deep trey on the wing to help close the gap.

The Blue and Gold though closed out the frame with a 5-2 run after lay-ups by Langford. Pederzani also nailed a jumper for the visitors as time expired for the 24-18 score at the half.

Worcester State gradually pushed its lead up to double digits and outscored the visiting Wildcats 23-13 over the first ten minutes of the second half to take a comfortable 47-31 lead with 9:21 left in regulation.

El-Qasem led the way scoring 10 of her 12 points over that stretch including a pair of layups that book-ended the rally.

Johnson and Wales inched their way back into the contest behind a relentless full-court press that aided the Wildcats in a late surge.

With the Lancers holding the 53-41 edge and 5:21 on the clock, neither squad sank another shot until Perderzani canned the front-end of a bonus try and she followed up the next possession with a trifecta to get the visitors within single digits just after the two-minute mark (53-45).

After Frankian sank a pair of freebees to push the advantage to 56-47, the Wildcats scored four quick points as freshman Sarah Duryea (Middle Village, NY) rang in two at the line and Whitehead registerd a field goal to close the gap to 56-51 with 50 seconds remaining.

However, the Lancers were able to seal the game with four free throws in the closing moments to escape with the win.

JWU struggled from the field for the game (20-for-65 – 31 percent), but held the slight advantage in rebounds (46-42) and made 11 of their 15 tries from the charity stripe (73 percent).

The Lancers finished with a modest 37 percent clip from the floor (20-for-54), though missed 12 of their attempts at the line (17-for-29 – 59 percent). WSU also held a 14-8 margin in points off of turnovers while dishing out 18 assists for 20 made field goals.

Both sides continue non-conference action as the Blue and Gold host Suffolk this Thursday at WPI's Harrington Auditorium for a 12 PM tip-off. Meanwhile, the Wildcats host Wesleyan (CT) on Tuesday, January 13 for a 7:00 PM start time.

Story by Sports Information Intern - Michael Corso '12