BOSTON, Mass. -- Simmons basketball fought hard to the end but it was not enough as the Lasell College Lasers pulled away late in the second half to defeat the Sharks, 66-52 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference action Monday evening. The Sharks (2-12, 0-4 GNAC) were led by freshman Jen Janiak (Chelmsford, Mass.), who shot 5-11 from behind the arc and scored 15 points on the night.
The Lasers (8-8, 3-2 GNAC) took an early first half lead with stellar offense by Molly Lauver with ten points and Danielle Autencio and Kim Archibald adding six points apiece. The Sharks rebounded and erased a 10-point deficit to tie the game at 24 with five minutes remaining in the first. Janiak buried a three pointer to give the Sharks their first lead of the evening but Lauver hit a three of her own to regain the Lasers lead into halftime.
Lasell jumped out to an early lead in the second with six points by Alexis Chappell. Simmons senior Liz O'Connor (Milton, Mass.) hit a three to close the gap but the Lasers offense continued to pull away with strong play from Kayla Vincelette and Justine Ryan. Simmons junior Hannah May (Hamden, Conn.) added 11 points for the Sharks, but the Lasers defense was relentless with 22 defensive rebounds.
Simmons returns to action on Wednesday, January 23rd when they host GNAC rival Rivier College at 7:00 p.m. Lasell travels to Albertus Magnus for more GNAC play on the same date and time.