MILTON, Mass. – Sophomore guard Emily Savino (Ellington, CT) scored 14 points and made a clutch three-pointer in the final minute as the Western New England women's basketball team defeated Curry 60-59 in The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC) opener for both squads Saturday afternoon in Milton.

Curry began the game on a 7-0 run that started with a shot from beyond the arc by sophomore forward Hailey Rafferty (Worcester, MA) and was capped off with a jumper by Rafferty. WNEC took the lead (12-11) with 12:49 remaining in the first half, after a layup by freshman guard Ali Pessolano (Hampden, MA) The Golden Bears biggest lead of the game (29-21) came after a pair of made free throws from junior guard Kathleen Janinski (Templeton, MA) with 3:04 remaining in the first period.

The Colonels (8-2) chipped away at the lead and tied the game up at 49-49 with 5:51 remaining in regulation after a layup by senior guard Joneiha Veiga (Brockton, MA). A three-pointer by Rafferty with 15 seconds remaining cut the deficit to one (60-59). Curry then forced a jump ball with seven seconds left to give themselves one last opportunity, but couldn’t capitalize when a last-second buzzer-beater would not fall.

WNEC (8-3) was led by Savino with 14 points. Sophomore center Elena Radzikowski (Medway, MA) added 11 and sophomore guard Shelby Van Huysen (Killingworth, CT) chipped in with 10. Senior forward Kelly McCormick (Manchester, CT) led the Golden Bears on the glass with a game-high nine boards.

Rafferty led the Colonels with 14 points. Senior forward Cortney Robinson (Brockton, MA) scored 13 and sophomore forward Carolyn Houston (Melrose, NY) contributed 10. The Colonels were led by Robinson with a team-high eight rebounds.

Both teams resume play on January 11 at 6:00 p.m., as WNEC travels to Roger Williams and Curry hosts the University of New England.

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