Salem Drops Non-Conference Matchup in Worcester

Jose Rodriguez '24, Staff Writer | Media & Communications

WORCESTER, Mass.- Sofia Santorelli (Harrison, NY) and Adrianna Niles (Tewksbury, Mass.) led WPI to a 78-46 victory over Salem State on Sunday afternoon at Harrington Auditorium. The Engineers' boosted their record to 5-3, while the Vikings slipped to 5-3. 

For the home team, Niles recorded a double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Meanwhile, Ava Giansiracusa (Wethersfield, Ct.) contributed six assists, and Alice Kelly (Wethersfield, Ct.)  went 6-10 from the field for 14 points.

Nicolette D'Itra (Revere, Mass.) paced the Vikings with 16 points while Kylie Gates (Pembroke, Mass.)  dished out five assists, and Ernidia Goncalves (Everett, Mass.) grabbed 10 rebounds in the effort.

Both teams traded three-pointers on their opening possessions with WPI's Shannon Reno (Millbury, Mass.) starting the scoring, followed by Abuk Teng (Manchester, N.H.) for Salem State. The game was closely contested in the first period, with the Vikings trailing by one point midway through. However, just under the five-minute mark a D'Itria layup was able to put the Vikings ahead. But Kelly started a 7-0 run for the Engineers, which would be good enough to reclaim the 15-9 edge. The first period ended with Salem State down by four points, as the score was 17-13 in favor of WPI. 

WPI dominated the second period, starting with an 8-2 run highlighted by two different three-pointers from Kelly and Santorelli. Salem State struggled to keep up and was down by nine points midway through the second period. The Engineers then went on an impressive 13-1 run to end the period, led by Santorelli, who scored eight of the thirteen points. At halftime, WPI had extended their lead to 21 points, with the score at 40-19. 

Teng was the leading scorer for the Vikings at halftime with seven points. For WPI, Santorelli was the top scorer with 13 points, shooting 5-7 from the field. Giansiracusa had five assists, and Adrianna Nieves had eight rebounds. 

The Vikings were hoping for a comeback in the second half, and they started the third period with a 6-2 run. However, despite their strong start, WPI still held a commanding lead of 21 points with five minutes left in the period. Salem State was down by 24 points at the end of the third period, with the score at 61-37 in favor of WPI. 

The fourth period saw both teams struggle to score, with only five points combined in the first three minutes. WPI then went on an 11-3 run to seal their victory, with the final score favoring the home team, 78-46.

The Vikings will look to bounce back when they return to their home court on Tuesday night against Brandeis with a 7p.m. tipoff.