BOSTON, Mass.--Westfield State University (5-3) used a 12-4 closing run and forced 18 second-half turnovers to outlast UMass Boston women's basketball (4-4) 62-56 Thursday evening at the Clark Athletic Center Gymnasium.

After UMass Boston took a 52-50 lead with 5:24 to play, the Owls proceeded to score the next six points in a row and hit five of six free throws down the stretch to snap a two-game losing streak at the hands of the Beacons. 

Forwards Olivia Murphy (Canton, Mass.) and Kirsten Morrison (North Reading, Mass.) combined for 30 points and 12 rebounds, who failed to move two games above .500 in their third crack at it. Murphy finished with a game-high 16 points, to go along with her six rebounds, four assists and three blocks. 

Sophomore point guard Taje Burston (Springfield, Mass.) chipped in with 11 points on 2-of-5 shooting, as she teamed up with Murphy and Morrison to score 28 of the Beacons' 31 first-half points. 

Jamie Ballou (Foxboro, Mass.) provided a spark off the bench for the second-straight game, as the freshman point guard drained two huge 3-pointers, when the Beacons offense had gone cold.

Westfield State was led by led Forbasaw Nkamebo, who finished with a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds in 29 minutes. Despite coming off the bench, the junior center finished with six offensive rebounds and shot an efficient 5-of-10 from the field. 

Senior point guard Jen Ashton added 12 points along with a game-high seven points and seven steals and center Gabby Felix poured in 11 points in her first start of the season.

After a slow start to the game, UMass Boston took a 22-20 lead with 5:39 in the first half, on the back of a 7-0 run. Murphy hit a pair of layups, sandwiched around a Burston three, to give UMass Boston it's first lead in nearly eight minutes.

The two teams would combine for four ties over the final five minutes, before Murphy gave UMass Boston a 31-29 lead heading into the break, off a putback layup with under five seconds to play.

Westfield State came out firing heading into the second half, as they built their largest lead at 37-31 with 18:28 remaining. Felix led the 8-0 run with four points, while Ashton and Jill Valley added layups to make it a six-point game. 

After a three-minute scoring drought, Ballou gave UMass Boston a brief 41-38 lead, with back-to-back 3-pointers in a 38-second span. 

The Beacons would hold on to the slim lead over the next six minutes, before Ashton hit a jump shot to give Westfield State a 50-49 lead with 6:20 to play.

Murphy answered back with a layup and Morrison hit one of two free throws to make it 52-50 in favor of the hosts, but that would be the last time UMass Boston would score for two minutes and 52 seconds.

Westfield State took advantage of the Beacons' scoring drought by going on a 12-4 run over the final 5:24. The Owls were especially effective from the free throw line during that span, as they hit 8-of-10 free throws.

UMass Boston held big advantages in all three shooting categories, as the Beacons shot 39.6 percent (21-of-53) from the field, knocked down 5-of-8 (62.5 percent) of their 3-point attempts and hit 81.8 percent (9-of-11) of their free throws. The Beacons couldn't overcome their turnovers though, as Westfield State turned 26 Beacons' turnovers into 22-15 advantage in points off turnovers.

UMass Boston will look to turn things around quickly, as they host defending Little East Conference Champions Rhode Island College Saturday at 1 p.m.