As the Boston University women’s basketball team defeated Lafayette College 75-58 on the road, sophomore Naiyah Thompson matched a career-high with 17 points, and freshman Vanessa Edgehill contributed the first 11 points of her career
The Terriers (8-14, 6-5 Patriot League) controlled the opening tip and the game’s first three minutes as senior guard Courtney Latham’s three of her game-high seven assists keyed a 14-0 opening run by BU.
“We talked about needing to come out being really focused and play our game right away from the start,” BU head coach Katy Steding said.
Midway through the third quarter, Lafayette was able to tie the game up at 44.
“With any sort of rush of energy like that [opening run] you are going to get some sort of backlash and a little bit of a let down on your own side,” Steding said. “They came storming back and we had to battle with them for a while.”
The Leopards (1-22, 0-11 Patriot League) dropped their 22nd consecutive contest after opening the season with their singular victory.
Lafayette’s opening basket came over four minutes into the contest on a 3-pointer by junior guard Anna Ptasinski, which made the score 14-3. Lafayette closed the opening stanza on an 11-4 run and trailed just 18-11 by the first quarter’s end.
Ptasinski, who finished with 16 points, picked up where she left off in the second quarter, nailing a deep three-pointer from the right wing to bring the BU lead down to 20-14. Later with 1:55 remaining in the first half, the Leopards got within one at 30-29.
After a defensive miscommunication on the Leopards’ side, Edgehill and senior guard Sarah Hope hit consecutive triples as BU extended its lead to 37-29 with just over 50 ticks remaining in the first half.
The halftime score was 37-32 in favor of the Terriers, after Leopard freshman Olivia Gumbs nailed a triple with under 10 seconds to go in the first half. The Terriers limited themselves to just three first half turnovers while going 5-9 from beyond the arc.
With 3:17 remaining in the third quarter, Gumbs, who finished with game-highs of 19 points and 11 rebounds, converted a layup to tie the score at 44, but BU closed the quarter with six consecutive points thanks to layups by junior forward Kara Sheftic and junior center Sophie Beaudry, followed by two free throws to make the Terrier lead 50-44.
Edgehill opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer off an assist by Beaudry. Prior to this contest, Edgehill had played just 14 minutes across five appearances. The Franklin native finished the game with 11 points and 2 rebounds, including 3-5 from distance in 16 minutes of play.
“Edge came really focused and ready to play,” Steding said. “I tell our kids all the time you don’t know when you’re name’s going to get called, one of the great things about us is we have a great group of kids who are ready when their turns are called.”
Junior guard Corrine Williams made her first start after missing four consecutive games spanning from Jan. 11 to Feb. 2.
In BU’s previous matchup against the Leopards, Williams poured in 21 points, 9 rebounds and 5 steals across 32 minutes of action.
In her first start since the injury, Williams contributed 12 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
“It’s really wonderful to have her back out there. I think she’s the consummate glue player and always has done a great job for us,“ said Steding.
In the game’s final 13 minutes, the Terriers outscored the Leopards by a 17 point margin, closing out the contest similar to the way they started it.
“It was a total team effort, our kids were really focused, locked in,” Steding said. “I think collectively we feel that momentum surge when it turns our way and I think people came off the bench with a little extra spark, a spring in their step.”
