O’Connor Leads Rams Over Owls 89-71

By Framingham State athletics

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WESTFIELD STATE – Framingham State junior forward Flannery O’Connor scored 33 points and grabbed 18 rebounds to pave the way for the Rams in an 89-71 win over Westfield State in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference game at the Woodward Center on Saturday afternoon. 

Framingham State improves to 9-3 overall and gets its first Conference win of the season.

Westfield State is now 8-7 overall and 1-1 in the MASCAC.

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HOW IT HAPPENED:  

• O’Connor and fellow post player Katty Haidul combined for 53 of the Rams 89 points, shooting 26-37 from the floor between them. 
• The game played out as the expected contrast of styles.  Westfield was able to push the pace in the first quarter, leading 26-21 at the end of the first quarter.   Westfield shot 40.9 percent from the floor in the first quarter, but the Owls went ice cold from the field from there as the Rams held them to just 25 percent of their shots the rest of the way, including just 5-24 from behind the three-point arc in the final three quarters.  

• Framingham used a strong second quarter to grab a 46-40 lead at the half, with O’Connor netting 18 of her points in the opening stanza.  

• The game stayed close throughout the third quarter, but Framingham was finally able to extend the lead midway through the fourth quarter. leading 73-66 with 5:25 to play, the Rams embarked on a 12-0 run over the next three minutes, breaking pressure and getting the ball inside with Haidul scoring six of the 12 points in the run and put the game away.  

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INSIDE THE NUMBERS: 

• O’Connor finished with a season-high 33 points on 16-of-22 from the field including 18 rebounds and two blocks. Haidul scored 20 on 10-of-15 from the floor with 12 boards, three assists, a steal and a rejection.  
• Katherine Haselton added 18 points with six assists and two steals while Gwendolyn Carpenter dished out a game-best 12 assists.  
• Westfield was led by 15 points from junior guard Olivia Hadla and 14 from Jordan Grant.  Jess Gardner and Lila Labrie each added 10 points. 

UP NEXT: Westfield will next host Salem State in a conference game on Wednesday with a 5:30 p.m. tip off at the Woodward Center.

Framingham will next host Fitchburg State on Wednesday in another conference matchup.