BOSTON, Mass.  –  Senior guard Keriann Farina finished with a team-high 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting, but a big second quarter run by Eastern Connecticut State University helped them down UMass Boston Women's Basketball, 64-49, in a Little East Conference matchup at Geissler Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.

The loss dropped UMass Boston back into a tie for the sixth and final spot in the Little East Conference Tournament with the University of Southern Maine who defeated Keene State College on Saturday. The Beacons currently own the tiebreaker over the Huskies due to head-to-head tiebreaker after defeating them on the road earlier this week.

THE BASICS

UMass Boston 49, Eastern Connecticut State University 64

UMass Boston (10-9, 3-6 LEC)

Eastern Connecticut (14-4, 8-1 LEC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Beacons found themselves behind early as the Warriors scored the first four points of the game, but a 9-1 run in response, led by five points from senior guard Keriann Farina, helped put UMass Boston ahead by four, 9-5. The Beacon lead would go up to seven after one quarter, 17-10, and lead by as many as nine points with 9:34 left in the second quarter after a putback layup from junior forward Alexah Potter.

But a 13-2 run by the Warriors, which featured six points from sophomore forward Taylor Salato, helped Eastern Connecticut retake the lead, 23-21. The Warriors would go ahead by as many as five points after a basket by senior guard Julie Keckler with 2:14 remaining in the first half before the Beacons cut their deficit down to three, 29-26, heading into the locker room.

Starting the second half, Eastern Connecticut would stretch their lead to eight points with a 5-0 run to start the third quarter before a pair of Potter free throws put it to a halt. The Warriors would continue to remain in front in the contest while the Beacons continue to work on trimming their deficit, carving it down to three points, 35-32.

Trailing by four, 42-38, with under two minutes to go in the quarter, a three from Keckler provided a momentum swing for Eastern Connecticut who closed the quarter on an 8-2 run, going up by double-digits for the first time in the game, 50-40. With the three-pointer, Julie Keckler eclipsed 1,000 career points for the Warriors.

Looking to get back into the contest and steal a road LEC win, momentum seemingly swung back in UMass Boston's favor when freshman guards Beeban Jikiemi-Pearson and Tatiannah Fevry converted on back-to-back baskets around an offensive foul to trim the deficit down to six, 52-46. But the veteran Warrior lineup continued to punch back down the stretch of the fourth quarter, holding off the young Beacons' team, 00-00, dropping UMass Boston to 3-6 in conference play this season.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Graduate forward Meg Dixon notched her eighth double-double of the season, scoring 11 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, bringing her within 14 points of 1,000 in her career
• Eastern Connecticut controlled the boards, grabbing 43 rebounds compared to 32 rebounds from UMass Boston
• Senior forward Anna Barry led the way for Eastern Connecticut with 18 points and six rebounds on 8-of-17 shooting
• UMass Boston has now lost nine consecutive games to Eastern Connecticut, their last win came back during the 2017-18 season

WHO'S NEXT
UMass Boston heads into the final stretch of their regular season schedule, returning home for three of their next four games starting on Wednesday night against WestConn. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 PM. A big second half performance by the Wolves propelled them past the Beacons in their matchup earlier this year at Feldman Arena, 65-54.