BOSTON, Mass. – Brynn Rautiola scored 24 of the Owls' 47 points on Saturday afternoon at the University of Massachusetts-Boston, but the Keene State College women's basketball team fell short as they lost 50-47 to the Beacons.

Records

• Keene State: 6-7 (2-2 LEC)
• UMass-Boston: 5-9 (2-3 LEC)

How it Happened


KSC came out of the gates hot for the second consecutive game as they outscored the Beacons 20-12 in the opening quarter of play. The Owls jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the opening 3:30 of play as Valerie Luizzi opened with a layup for KSC, followed by Rautiola scoring her five points. Both teams traded baskets on four consecutive possessions shortly after with Ruby Dasaro and Samantha Lee making layups for the Owls, while UMB cut the KSC's lead to four from a three from Ashleigh Lagor and layup from Samora Merchant just over halfway through the quarter. The rest of the first, the Owls outscored the Beacons 9-5 with Rautiola eight of KSC's points, with Luizzi tacking on a free throw in the closing seconds to give the Keene State an eight-point lead going into the second. In playing all 10 minutes of the first quarter, Rautiola went 4-for4 from the field, including 3-for-3 from three and a perfect 2-for-2 from the line for 13 points as she single-handedly outscored the Beacons in the first.
 
UMass-Boston stormed back in the second quarter, as they outscored the Owls by nine to take the lead heading into the half. In the opening two minutes, both teams tallied a pair of baskets as KSC increased their lead to nine with a jumper from Lilly Krysinski and a three from Angel Pillsbury, while Lagor and Mia Molinari made field goals for the Beacons. UMB went on an 11-2 run over to tie the game up at 27 apiece with 2:24 remaining in the first half with Vanessa Bucha leading the way with six of the Beacons' points. Playing in her first game of the season, Aryanna Murray scored her first basket of the season with two minutes remaining in the second quarter to put KSC back up a basket. Sabanna Berrios scored on back-to-back possessions for the Beacons' following Murray's basket for the Owls, to give UMB the lead with under a minute remaining. Rautiola evened the game back up at 31 apiece for the Owls on the ensuing possession, but Sibayla Jensen's free throw with nine seconds remaining gave the Beacons a 32-31 lead heading into the half.
 
In the third quarter, the Owls were held to just three points from the field. The last time KSC was held to three points or less in a quarter was last season when the Owls were shutout in the fourth quarter on December 30, 2023, when the KSC went scoreless in the final quarter of their 46-33 loss against Grinnell College after heading into the fourth tied 33-33. UMB opened the scoring with baskets on back-to-back possessions shortly into the third to increase their lead to five, but 3:02 into the quarter, Rautiola hit another three to cut the lead to two. Unfortunately for the Owls, they went 0-for-9 the remainder of the third, including 0-for-6 from three for the remainder of the quarter. As much as the Owls struggled the rest of the third, the Beacons did not do too much better, as they recorded just seven points the rest of the way, shooting 3-for-12 (25%), for a 43-34 lead heading into the final 10 minutes of play.
 
KSC opened the scoring in the fourth on their first possession of the quarter from a pair of free throws from Murray, but UMB answered back with two made free throws of their own a few minutes later to increase their lead back to nine. Luizzi converted an and-one on the Owls' ensuing possession, but KSC went 0-for-4 from the field with two turnovers over the next four minutes, while UMB scored just two points to increase their lead back to eight with three minutes remaining. The Owls went on a 6-0 run as the clock reached under a minute to play, with a three from Rautiola and three made free throws (two from Dasaro and one from Rautiola), but KSC left points on the board, as they missed three free throws over the two-minute span. KSC pulled within a point after Rautiola made two free throws with seven seconds remaining, but Bucha capitalized on both of her attempts for the Beacons, as well, putting UMB back up by three with six seconds remaining. Dasaro received the inbound pass following the made free throws and found Rautiola who escaped her two defenders, but her shot at the buzzer from three to tie it was off the mark and UMB held on for the 50-47 win over the Owls.
 
Inside the Paint

• With the loss, the Owls still lead the all-time series between the two schools, 40-17, as the Beacons snapped the Owls three-game winning streak in the series,
• Rautiola recorded a game-high 24 points, to bring her average points per game to 20.2 points on the season.
• The Owls shot 25.2% (14-for-55) from the field, while UMB shot 30.2% (16-for-53).
• KSC capitalized on points from turnovers, as they scored 21 points on UMB's 23 turnovers, while the Beacons only scored 12 from the Owls' 18 turnovers.
• Lee finished with a pair of blocks on defense to go with her four steals, both of which were game highs.

 
Up Next

Keene State is on the road again for their next contest as they travel to take on Eastern Connecticut State University on Tuesday, January 14, at 6:00 PM as the Owls look to get revenge for their playoff loss to the Warriors last season.
UMass-Boston plays at home for their next game as they host the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth on Tuesday, January 14, at 2:00 PM.