DANBURY, Conn. - Sophomore guard Malaysia Dingle (Holbrook, Mass.) tallied a game-high 16 points to guide the Western Connecticut State University women's basketball team to a 66-59 victory over visiting Little East Conference foe UMass Boston on Wednesday evening at Feldman Arena. Senior guard Nicole Vivian (New Milford, Conn.) hauled in a game-high 12 rebounds, while junior guard Francesca Foster (Mystic, Conn.) chipped in with 12 points off the bench. 

Graduate student guard Paige Olliverre and rookie guard Maddie Parks netted 12 points apiece to lead the Beacons. 

The contest was close in the early going before the visitors put together a run to move ahead, 31-17, midway thru the second quarter. Alexah Potter rounded out the spurt with a pair of free throws. WestConn would close the gap to seven at halftime when Foster drilled a three-pointer to make it 34-27.

The Beacons appeared to be pulling away in the third stanza. Parks converted a layup late in the period, giving the visitors a 45-33 lead. However, the Wolves staged a remarkable rally that began in the third and carried into the fourth. Trailing by six to conclude the third, WestConn stormed back to outscore UMass Boston by a 21-8 margin in the final quarter. Senior center Gabrielle Franks (Madison, Conn.) connected on a midrange jumper to knot the count before Dingle came up with a steal and a bucket, giving the Wolves a 53-51 lead with six minutes remaining. The dagger came with 1:20 left when Dingle found junior forward Alyssa Virtue (Groton, Conn.) for a baseline shot that seemed to take the wind out of the Beacon sails. 

With the victory, WestConn improved to 6-13 overall and 2-8 in league play while UMass Boston dropped to 4-13 and 2-8. WestConn returns to action when they host Vermont State University Castleton on Saturday at 2 p.m.