WILLIMANTIC, Conn.   – Junior forward Lauren Kelleher (Dartmouth, Mass.) scored a game-high 23 points and hauled down 10 rebounds to lead the Eastern Connecticut State University Warriors to a 75-57 win over the University of Southern Maine in a Little East Conference women's basketball game Saturday afternoon at Geissler Gym in Willamantic, Conn.

         The win snaps a two-game losing streak for the Warriors who improve to 3-2 overall and 1-0 in the Little East.  The Huskies fall to 4-3 and 0-1 with the loss.  Southern Maine is 0-3 on the road this season.

         Kelleher was one of four Warriors in double-figures. The 6-1 forward was 8-for-13 from the field and 7-for-8 from the free throw line.  Kelleher  was at the center of the Warriors big first half in which they scored 46 points on an outstanding 51.4 percent (18-for-35) from the field.  Senior forward Piper Chapman (Portsmouth, R.I../The Prout School) and junior guard Jessica Blodgett (Niantic, Conn./East Lyme) added 15 and 14 points each, while freshman guard Kristina Forsman (Newington, Conn.) added 11 points.

         Junior forward Haley Jordan (Falmouth, Maine) continued her outstanding play scoring a career-high 22 points to lead the Huskies.  Jordan was 9-for-14 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the free throw line.  The 5-9 forward added seven rebounds, two blocked shots, two steals and an assist.  Senior forward Courtney Cochran (Waite, Maine/Woodland) chipped in with 12 point and nine rebounds. 

         Comfortably ahead by 14 points at the half 46-32, Eastern Connecticut put the game out reach for the Huskies early in the second half rattling off 10 unanswered points to take a daunting 56-32 lead with 15:43 to play.  Kelleher scored the first six of the Warriors ten points in the run and Blodgett closed it out with two free throws and a lay-up.

         The Huskies scored their first basket of the second half nearly five minutes in on a jumper from Jordan, but Kelleher answered right back to return the Warriors to its insurmountable 24 point lead 58-34 with 14:26 to go.  From the their the Huskies were never able to get any closer than 16 points the rest of the way.

         Southern Maine struggled offensively shooting just 36.9 percent (24-for-65) from the field and 46.2 percent (6-for-13) from the free throw line.  The Huskies were also outrebounded 44-31.

         Southern Maine travels to Salem State on Tuesday (7:00 p.m.).  Eastern Connecticut hosts Westfield State on Tuesday (6:00 p.m.). 

–cac–