Mitchell College Women Outshoot Bay Path

Mitchell College's women's basketball team earned a win over Bay Path College on Tuesday, while the men's team fell to Lesley University. The following information was provided by David Longolucco, sports information director at Mitchell College, and Ryan McCarthy, sports information director at Lesley University:

Women's Basketball: Mitchell 84, Bay Path 72

The Mitchell College women’s basketball team shot a season-high 50 percent en route to an 84-72 victory over Bay Path College on Tuesday night at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

All five Mitchell starters scored in double figures led by a game-high 25 points from freshman Sheanna James (Waterbury, Conn./Kaynor Tech). The rookie turned in her fourth straight 20-point performance on 12-for-20 shooting and added seven rebounds, eight assists and four steals in 37 minutes. Kayla Skiffington (East Longmeadow, Mass./East Longmeadow) led Bay Path with 24 points on 9-for-16 shooting and finished with a game-high 18 rebounds and seven assists.

Bay Path (6-15 overall, 6-11 NECC) was hot out of the gate, connecting on its first five shots to jump out to a 13-4 lead in the opening minutes. The Wildcats moved the ball around well and had four different players score a basket during the stretch, with Skiffington leading the way with five early points.

Mitchell (7-16 overall, 6-11 NECC) quickly made up the deficit behind a 10-2 run over the next two minutes. Freshman Zilka Navarro (Waterbury, Conn./Kennedy) was the catalyst, hitting three shots and scoring seven points during the spurt as the Mariners clawed back to within a point at 15-14.

Just over two minutes later, Mitchell went ahead on a jumper by James and never looked back. The Mariners used a 16-2 run to extend the lead to double digits and led 30-19 with 6:20 to go in the half following another basket by James, who scored nine points in the stretch and 15 in the stanza.

Mitchell led by as many as 18 points before taking a 43-28 lead into the locker room at the half. Brittney Alexander (Enfield, Conn./Enrico Fermi) had 12 points at the break to pace the Wildcats.

The Mariners never let their lead dip below double digits in the second half and coasted to victory. Bay Path fought hard to close the gap to 11 with 47 seconds left to play but couldn’t get any closer.

Mitchell hit 10 three-pointers in the contest, half of which came from junior Kaylee Cerruto (Torrington, Conn./Torrington) who finished with 23 points. Senior Bianca Young (Bridgeport, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral) recorded a double-double with 13 points and a team-high 10 rebounds while Navarro and classmate Hannah Smith (Wakefield, R.I./South Kingstown) chipped in with 10 points each. Navarro also handed out a season-high eight assists.

Brittney Alexander finished with 16 points and five assists while freshman Toni Alexander (Enfield, Conn./Enrico Fermi) added 10 points and five helpers. Taylor Riley (Colchester, Vt./Burlington) rounded out the Bay Path players in double figures with 12 points.

The win was crucial for Mitchell’s chances at earning a postseason berth. The Mariners moved into a tie with Bay Path and Southern Vermont College for sixth place in the New England Collegiate Conference standings with one game to play. All three teams own 6-11 conference marks, though only two will qualify for the upcoming NECC Championship. Mitchell split the regular season series against Southern Vermont and won both meetings against Bay Path.

Mitchell will close out the regular season at home against Becker College on Saturday at 2 p.m. Bay Path returns to action at home against Regis College on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Men's Basketball: Lesley 83, Mitchell 68

Lesley University broke a 38-38 halftime tie by outscoring the Mariners 35-13 over the first 13:46 of the second half in the Lynx 83-68 victory over Mitchell College in New England Collegiate Conference play Tuesday night at the Nicholas Athletics Center.

John Sanchez (Carson, CA/Saint John Bosco) led all players with 22 points on 11-14 shooting, dishing out a game-high 11 assists to only two turnovers in his first double-double of the season. Fellow senior Bryant Itonyo (Medford, MA/Medford) shot 4-9 from three-point range for 14 points to lead a Lynx aerial attack that shot a scorching 13-25 (52 percent) from downtown as Lesley improved to 11-12 and 7-8 in NECC play.

The Lynx knocked down nine first-half three-pointers in creating what was a 10-point lead, but Mitchell hit 5-7 from distance in the first half, including back-to-back treys from Enoch Contreras (Boca Raton, FL/West Boca) and Joshua Ford (Jersey City, NJ/St. Anthony) that tied the contest at 38-38 at the break. Lynx guards Itonyo and Matt Gibson (Quincy, MA/Lexington Catholic) each knocked down two triples in the first, including one from Gibson that sent the Lynx up 36-26, but Ford led a 12-2 run with a pair of baskets to force a tie at the break.

Gibson scored on a reverse layup and a baseline spin move out of halftime as Lesley took a 44-38 lead out of the half, and Itonyo’s third three made it a 49-40 game inside the 15:00 mark. His fourth and final trey ignited a 12-0 Lesley run that blew the Mariners out of the water for good at 73-51 in the final six minutes.

Gibson finished 13 points on 5-7 shooting, hitting 3-5 from distance, and Justin Rosa (East Brunswick, NJ/Marist High) rounded out four Lynx in double-figures with 12 on 5-8 shooting from the floor, 2-4 from deep.

Ford led Mitchell (5-17, 3-12 NECC) with 20 points, tying with Lesley’s Kris Bennett (Las Vegas, NV/Durango) for game-high honors with seven rebounds. Terrance Fisher (Richmond, VA/Richmond Christian) and Contreras each added 11, the latter handing out a team-best six assists with only two turnovers.

Lesley honors seniors Sanchez, Itonyo and John Stockton in their final home game on Thursday night against Salem State at 8:00. Mitchell takes on first-place Becker on Saturday.