Worcester, Mass. - Freshman guard Christina Raiti (Plainview, N.Y.) scored a team-high 11 points while junior forward Shantel Hanniford (Nantucket, Mass.) added eight points and pulled down ten boards to help propel the visiting Trinity College Bantams past the Worcester State University Lancers in women's basketball action this evening at the Lancer Gymnasium. 

Trinity, which improves to 5-2 with its second win in a row, was also paced by junior guard Abigail Hancock (Casco, Maine) who turned in a solid all-around performance with six points, four assists, and four steals.  The Lancers drop to 3-4 and were led offensively by sophomore Shannen El-Qasem (Rutland, Mass.) who recorded a game high 14 points.  Third-year Meaghan Burns (West Brookfield, Mass.) chipped in with 11 points, and senior Meaghan O'Keefe (Warren, Mass.) corralled nine boards to go along with three steals.

Worcester State held a 14-6 lead with 11:20 on the clock before Trinity utilized an 11-4 run to get within one point of the lead on the back of a trey by Raiti at the 6:32 mark (18-17).  Highlighted by a traditional three-point play by Burns, the Lancers gave themselves a five point cushion with 2:16 left in the first half (24-19), but the Bantams did not go away quietly.  The visitors made the game a one-point contest twice on a jumper by junior Moriah Sweeney (Ramsey, N.J.) and again after Hancock's lay-up with six seconds remaining for a 26-25 halftime score.

Trinity slowly built up their advantage, outscoring the Lancers, 20-9, over the first 10 minutes of the second half for the 45-35 edge.  Worcester State got back into the game by chipping away at the lead on a 10-3 surge over the next 7½ minutes. El-Qasem bookended the run with a lay-up at the 9:56 mark and then she finished hitting the front of a one-and-one opportunity.  Trinity committed consecutive miscues to give the hosts the ball back, but they missed a pair of shots from the field with two minutes left.

The Bantams seized the momentum back on a jumper by junior forward Taylor Murtaugh (New York, N.Y.) with 42 seconds on the clock for a seven-point lead (52-42).  El-Qasem drove in for a field goal in the paint to make it a two-possession game with 20 ticks remaining, but it was not enough as Hanniford iced the game with a free throw for the final score. 

Trinity was solid on both ends of the floor shooting 44 percent from the field (19-for-43) while holding Worcester State to 39 percent (15-for-38) including 28 percent in the second half (7-for-25).  The Bantams also held a slight advantage in rebounds at 30-25 and recorded 11 swipes of the basketball to hold a 22-15 lead in points off turnovers.

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