SEARS SCORES 1000TH, PRIDE DOMINATE AMCATS

PAXTON, Mass. - Senior Laura Sears (Billerica, Mass.) scored her 1,000th career point while dropping a team-high 15, to lead Regis College past Anna Maria College, 74-43, in a The Commonwealth Coast Conference women's basketball matchup at The Fuller Activities Center on Saturday afternoon. The win improves the Pride to 17-8 overall and 7-6 in the TCCC, while the AMCATS finish 3-22 on the season and 0-13 in conference play. 

AMC senior Karine Almeida (Brockton, Mass.) was honored before the game as part of the Senior Day festivities for all of her contributions to the Anna Maria Athletic Program over the past four years. Almeida was the Team Captain for the AMC women's basketball and soccer teams this year.
 
The AMCATS hit four of their first six shots out of the gate, getting four early points from sophomore Emily Nugent (Worcester, Mass.), to take an 8-7 lead. The Pride battled back to take the lead on a layup by Sears and held a 19-17 lead with under nine minutes remaining in the half.
 
Regis then exploded to go on a 17-0 run, with Sears scoring on the consecutive possessions during the stretch, to build a commanding 36-17 advantage. The Pride continued to pour it on and went into the break with a 43-22 lead.
 
Regis outscored the AMCATS 20-10 on points off turnovers and an 18-6 advantage on points in the paint during the period. Sears led all scorers in the half with all 15 of her points coming in the period.
 
The Pride continued to dominate down low in the second half, outscoring the AMCATS 18-6 in the paint, and coasted for the 74-43 victory.
 
Sears paced the Pride with her team-high 15 points while junior Jessica Page (Quincy, Mass.) had 10 points and six rebounds, hitting 6-7 from the stripe. Senior forward Kim Mariotti (Springfield, Mass.) also had a strong game, scoring 10 points while grabbing five rebounds and two steals in the win.
 
Nugent led the AMCATS with a team-high 15 points while also collecting a game-high four steals. Junior Maggie Sielawa (Webster, Mass.) played tough down low, barely missing a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. Freshman Amanda Hevy (North Brookfield, Mass.) also contributed 9 points on 3-6 shooting from behind the arc.