Hadla’s Game-High 21 Powers Owls Past Lancers, 78-64

Olivia Hadla scored a game-high 21 points and Maddie Pond added 12 second-half points as Westfield State defeated Worcester State 78-64 in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference game from Worcester, Mass. on Wednesday night.

Hannah Sheldon (file photo)
Hannah Sheldon (file photo)
Video Box Score
January 10, 2024
WESTFIELD, Mass. – Olivia Hadla (Westfield, Mass.) scored a game-high 21 points and Maddie Pond (Holyoke, Mass.) added 12 second-half points as Westfield State defeated Worcester State 78-64 in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference game from Worcester, Mass. on Wednesday night. 
 
The Owls pick up their second conference win of the season, improving to 9-7 on the season and 2-1 in the MASCAC. The Lancers slip to 1-14 on the year and 0-2 in the league. 
 
The middle two quarters saw Westfield open up a double-digit lead, closing the second quarter by scoring seven straight points with a Hadla jumper and free throws from Jordan Grant (Gray, Maine) and Hadla putting the Owls up 37-31 heading into halftime. 
 
Beginning the third quarter, the Westfield lead hovered around eight points until Pond buried a triple to open up a 46-35 Owls lead with 6:36 left in the third quarter. The Lancers cut into the lead over the midway point of the period with Alana Smith (Chicopee, Mass.) scooping home a layup to make it a 52-47 game with 5:01 to play in the third. 
 
Westfield closed the final 3:28 of the quarter by ripping off a 10-2 scoring run, all of the points coming after Grant picked up her fourth foul of the game, forcing her to be subbed out for the remainder of the quarter. The depth for Westfield was on display as Pond hit a three-pointer, then Jess Gardner (Webster, Mass.) scored a layup off of a Lancers turnover from underneath their own basket. On the ensuing Owls possession, Hadla nailed a triple to drive the Owls lead to 13 points as Westfield held a 62-49 advantage after three quarters. 
 
Jordyn Lummus (Pittsfield, Mass.) stepped into a three-pointer to open the fourth quarter, then later in the frame, a pair of layups from Pond distanced the Owls to their largest lead of the night at 22 points, leading 74-52 with 3:57 left in the game to put the contest out of reach. 
 
The Owls opened the game by scoring nine of the first 11 points with six points coming off turnovers from the Lancers. Hannah Sheldon (Taunton, Mass.) buried a three, and Grant knocked down a paint jumper to give Westfield a 9-2 lead in the first two minutes of game action. 
 
Worcester State followed with five straight points after Katie Hurynowicz (Tyngsboro, Mass.) swiped a pass, and finished through contact, converting a three-point play to narrow the Owls lead to two points. Westfield never trailed in the first quarter, but the Lancers tied the game on three separate occasions as the game entered the second quarter tied 19-19. 
 
The game remained tightly contested throughout the first half until the Owls late run as Westfield outscored Worcester 43-30 in the second and third quarters combined. 
 
Hadla's 21 points came on an efficient 7-14 shooting night which included four triples in just five attempts. Pond connected from beyond the arc twice and scored 14 points. Grant supplied 13 points and five steals while Sheldon added 12 points for her second consecutive double-figure scoring game. 
 
Hurynowicz led the Lancers with 16 points, Abby St. Martin (Putnam, Conn.) posted a 13-point, ten-rebound double-double and Smith chipped in 12 points off the bench. 
 
Westfield State returns home to face Fitchburg State for their next game in MASCAC action from the Woodward Center on Saturday at noon.