THE BASICS 

Score: 
Lesley University, 61 – Wentworth, 82

Records: 
Lesley Lynx (0-19, 0-10 NAC)
WIT Leopards (4-13, 0-10 CCC)

Location: Medford, Mass. – Medford HS Gymnasium

Date: Monday, January 29, 2024

THE LEAD – Lesley University senior forward Alexandra Kerley (Boca Raton, Fla.) made history Monday night with a 41-point performance, setting the Lynx single-game scoring record in an 82-61 setback to Wentworth in non-conference women's basketball action at Medford High School.  

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Lesley freshman Savannah Gravitt (Richmond Hill, Ga.) gave the hosts an early lead with a free throw to open the action and later tied the score at 4-4 with a three from the wing before the Leopards rattled off a 10-2 run capped by a transition layup from sophomore Regan Madonia (Corrales, N.H.) to move the Leopards ahead 14-6 with 4:28 to play in the opening frame. A Madonia triple late in the quarter gave the Black & Gold a 19-12 advantage after 10 minutes of play.
• WIT junior Brianna Carroll (Douglas, Mass.) extended the lead to nine on the opening possession of the second quarter before Kerley went to work with back-to-back hoops to get Lesley to within two scores at 21-16.  It proved to be the closest the hosts would get as Wentworth was deadly from behind the arc, closing the half with a 43-29 cushion at the break.
• The Lynx pulled to within 12 points on three separate occasions in the second half but the Leopards never let it get back to single digits, increasing the cushion to 61-45 through three quarters and holding on for the comfortable 82-61 win.
• During the fourth, Kerley netted 11 of her 41 points to move into the Lynx record books surpassing a 37-point performance by Dakota Jones back on Feb. 8, 2020 vs. Elms. Kerley matched Jones' record with 2:49 remaining in regulation with a nifty assist from fellow senior Jordan Blair (Melbourne, Fla.). After a defensive stop, the duo hooked up again with Blair feeding Kerley in the post to set the new scoring mark at 39 points with 2:28 to play. With 1:24 to play, Lesley used a timeout to draw up a half court set piece for Kerley and it went according to plan to power the senior over the 40-point mark with another Blair dime to polish off the historic performance at 41 points.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Kerley finished the game shooting 18-for-29 from the field and 5-of-9 from the charity stripe to account for the 41-point record. It is the highest point total scored by a player this year in the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) and believed to be just the 10^th occurrence this season where an NCAA Division III Women's Basketball player broke the 40 point threshold as Kerley joins the following in the feat: Mia Castillo (Baruch) 50 pts on 1/12/24 at Medgar Evers, Chiara Brown (La Verne) 43 pts on 1/6/24 vs. Occidental, Arianna Gerig (Williams) 43 pts on 12/6/23 at Smith, Tanaesha Ellison (William Peace) 43 pts on 1/10/24 vs. Salem (NC), Toni Thompson (Occidental) 42 pts on 1/3/24 vs. Cal Lutheran, Elyce Knudsen (Millikin) 41 pts on 11/14/23 vs. Fontbonne, Grace Bezold (Hanover) 41 pts on 11/10/23 vs. Simpson, Rama Diallo (Lehman) 40 pts on 12/28/23 vs. Pitt-Bradford, Bri Frongillo (Emerson) 40 pts on 1/24/24 vs. Salve Regina.
• Kerley's 18 field goals is also a new LU single-game record to go along with a game-high 20 rebounds in the outing to become the first player in program history to record a 40-20 game. The monster double-double was her 14^th of the season to rank tied for third among NCAA Division III Women's Basketball players.
• Blair also made some Lynx history, finishing the contest with 14 assists which set the Lesley single-game assists record previously held by Jodi Fralick from a Nov. 18, 2007 performance of nine assists vs. Anna Maria. Nine of Blair's 14 helpers set up Kerley including the record-tying and two record-setting field goals. She added 10 points for her second double-double of her senior campaign.
• Carroll and Madonia paced WIT scoring career-highs of 24 and 20, respectively.

OF NOTE

• Junior guard Sacha Porter (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) played a career-high 37 minutes for the Lynx, recording a career-high five rebounds and two assists.
• Junior guard Hillary Berry (Walpole, N.H.) was perfect from the free throw line on the night (1-1) and added five rebounds in 38 minutes of action.
• First year guard Mary Osucha (Knoxville, Tenn.) made her collegiate debut in the setback, registering 10 minutes of court time.

UP NEXT

• LU is back on Friday, February 2 for the first of two NAC showdowns vs. VTSU Lyndon at 7:30 PM and will play the Hornets again on Saturday at 3:00 PM. Prior to Saturday's tip, the program will honor Kerley and Blair in a brief Senior Day ceremony.
• Wentworth returns to the hardwood on Wednesday, January 31 for a CCC tilt at University of New England at 5:40 PM in Biddeford, Maine.