QUINCY, Mass. – Three days removed from hitting five three-pointers on Sunday in a win over Conn. College, Maggie Lee '23 continued to rain in the baskets as she tied her career-high with a team-high 17 points, helping the Cardinals past Eastern Nazarene 74-63 on Thursday night. Wesleyan (8-9) closed out their non-conference slate in tonight's win while the Lions drop to 8-7 with the loss.
 
Lee poured in 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting, matching her career-high set in her freshman season in 2019-20. Lee did all her damage in just 16 minutes of action while she added five rebounds to add on to her stellar offensive night.
 
Caleigh Ryan '22 posted her fifth double-double of the season as she stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points (8-15 FG), 13 rebounds (nine offensive), five assists and two steals in 34 minutes. This marked Ryan's first double-digit rebounding game since December 5 (at NYU) while it was her 12^th career double-double.
 
Tori DaCosta '25 was very effective in a career-high 23 minutes as she finished with career-high totals in points (10) and rebounds (seven) while she posted the first block of her career. Maddie Clark '22 was also solid in the victory, adding 11 points with a season-high six assists.
 
Eastern Nazarene started strong, going up 9-4 on a Michala O'Donoghue three-pointer 2:45 into play but for the final 7:15 of the first quarter, Wesleyan held the Lions to just two points while the Cardinals held the Lions scoreless for the final 4:12 of the stanza. Taking full advantage of a strong defensive showing, Wesleyan's offense came alive and rattled off a 19-2 run over the final 7:15 of the quarter. Lee came off the bench and scored seven points in a span of four possessions to kickstart the run.
 
Wesleyan's lead grew to as many as 14 points as Abby Gray '24 hit a layup out of a halfcourt set early in the second quarter but the Lions made a move, cutting the deficit from 14 down to just four in the closing seconds. Lee still managed to connect on a mid-range jumper with 11 seconds left to make it 31-25 Cardinals at the halftime break.
 
A mini 6-0 run early in the third quarter, thanks to a pair of free throws and layup from Madison Szabo '23, gave Wesleyan a double-digit cushion once again at it was 39-29 with 7:01 left in the third. The Cardinal advantage later grew to 13 as Clark hit a three and Ryan connected on a jumper, both in the final minute, that made it 55-42 heading into the fourth quarter.
 
In the final stanza, the Lions again made a move and scored 9 of the first 11 points of the frame to cut the margin down to 57-51 with 6:27 left. After taking a timeout though, Eastern Nazarene saw Clark connect with a big triple off a feed from Ryan and after Lee hit two free throws and Ryan hit a jumper, Wesleyan suddenly led 64-51. The Cardinals would continue to lead by double digits for the remainder of play as the final score showed 74-63 in favor of Wesleyan.
Sophia Torres led the way with a game-high 21 points (10-21 FG) to go along with seven rebounds for Eastern Nazarene. Alondra Jimenez added 14 points while Sydni Oviatt posted six points, nine rebounds, four assists and two steals for the home side.
 
Wesleyan will enjoy the next seven days with no games as the Cardinals prepare for a six-game NESCAC run to close out the regular season, starting with a matchup at Amherst on Friday, January 28 at 7 PM. The Mammoths won the prior meeting this season, a non-conference Little 3 battle that ended in a 78-61 final.