DARTMOUTH, Mass. (November 22, 2025) – The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth held off a fourth quarter rally from Emerson College for a 77-69 victory in non-conference women's basketball action on day one of the Lafrance Hospitality Tournament at Tripp Athletic Center this afternoon.
Gould scored a season-high 20 points for the Lions, draining six three-pointers. (PHOTO BY Nancy Gonzales) |
Postgrad Yasmine Santos and senior Melanie DeMeo combined for 44 points, netting 22 points apiece to lead UMass Dartmouth to its first win of the season. DeMeo scored ten of her 22 points in the fourth quarter as the Corsairs held on for the win and she finished shooting 8-for-15 from the floor, with three rebounds, three assists and four steals. Santos scored 13 of her 22 in the first half when the hosts staked out a double-digit lead early, finishing 7-for-16 from the floor while converting all six free-throw attempts with three boards.
Senior Kasey Oliver added 12 points, seven steals, two assists and two rebounds for UMass Dartmouth, while sophomore Elizabeth Gresian rounded out the Corsairs four double-figure scorers with ten points, four rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots and a steal.
Sophomore Lindsay Gould netted a season-high 20 points, while junior Claire English and sophomore Jessie Silk recorded double-doubles to lead Emerson. Gould drained 6-of-13 three-pointers off the bench for the Lions for her first collegiate 20-point game.
English posted her first double-double of the season (eighth career) with season-high totals of 17 points and 15 rebounds, finishing 8-for-13 shooting with a career-high matching four assists and season-best totals of three blocked shots and two steals. Silk recorded her third-straight double-double and fourth of the year overall (sixth career) by adding 17 points and 12 rebounds, finishing 7-for-13 shooting from the floor. Junior Kendra Dodd chipped in eight points, three boards and three assists for the Lions.
Emerson fell behind by as much as 15 points midway through the second quarter and trailed by 11 (59-48) after a UMass Dartmouth three-pointer from freshman Riley Graveline 40-seconds into the fourth quarter. The Corsair lead was still ten (61-51) after a DeMeo jumper with 8:29 to play, when the Lions scored ten-straight, including back-to-back three-pointers by Gould and Dodd, to knot the score at 61-all after a putback by English with 5:56 remaining.
UMass Dartmouth recovered and scored the next eight points – the first four from DeMeo, to halt the run. Silk scored a layup and junior Kaylin O'Meara drained two free-throws to pull Emerson back within four (69-65) with 1:19 remaining, but senior Cristina Negron buried a three with 45-seconds on the clock to end Lions comeback and DeMeo sealed the win with four free-throws over the final half minute.
Noteworthy
- Silk, the reigning NEWMAC Offensive Player of the Week, has scored in double figures in all five Emerson games this season and six-straight games dating back to last year with her 20th career double-digit scoring game.
- Silk posted her fourth double-digit rebound game of the season (sixth career), giving her a double-double in three-straight games and four this season overall.
- English has scored in double-figures for the second time this season (12th career) with her 14th career double-digit rebound game as she posted her eighth career double-double.
- Gould scored in double-digits for the second time in her first season at Emerson and is the second Lion to net 20-plus points, joining Silk with one apiece.
- Gould's career-high six three-pointers matches the team season-best set by Silk at Wesleyan last weekend.
- Emerson's pair of double-doubles highlighted a 47-31 rebounding margin for the Lions who outscored UMass Dartmouth 14-0 in second chance points.
- UMass Dartmouth made the most of Emerson's 26 turnovers, while committing just 11, with a 20-7 margin in points off.
- Emerson finished shooting 41.9-percent from the floor, including 9-for-25 (36.9%) from three, while UMD connected on 40.3% of its shots, including 9-for-27 (33.3%) from beyond the arc.
Up Next
Emerson (3-2, 0-0 NEWMAC) is right back in action tomorrow for day two of the Lafrance Hospitality Tournament when it faces the University of New England in a non-conference matchup at noon. The Nor'easters recorded a 57-48 victory over Wesleyan University in today's tournament opener. The Lions next home game is on Tuesday, November 25, when they host Western New England University at Bobbi Brown and Steven Plofker Gym at 5:30 p.m. UMass Dartmouth (1-3, 0-0 Little East) faces Wesleyan tomorrow at 2 p.m.
For the latest on Emerson Athletics, follow the Lions via social media on Instagram as well as online at emersonlions.com powered by SIDEARM Sports.
