Box Score
NEWTON, Mass. – Lasell University junior guard Kiara Cerruti scored six points in the final 67 seconds of the third quarter to give her team the lead for good as the Lasers edged the Eastern Connecticut State University women's basketball team, 83-78, in the Warriors' season-opener Wednesday evening at the Lasell Athletic Center.
 
In a game where Eastern's largest lead of two points lasted a mere 42 seconds, Lasell carried its largest lead (eight points) into the final five minutes and held off the Warriors, who cut five points off the deficit twice in the final two minutes.
 
Senior forward Taylor Salato's  (East Haven) tip-in made it 77-74 with 1:50 left, and Eastern had a chance to tie after Lasell (1-1) missed a three-pointer, but the Warriors missed an inside attempt and the Lasers countered with their own inside bucket to make it 79-74 with a minute left. Soon after, first-year guard Liv Cassesse (Wallingford) nailed two free throws (Eastern scored 24 of its points from the line on 34 tries) to again make it a three-point game, but after an Eastern timeout, junior guard Shirle Major hit two free throws for Lasell, and after the Warriors missed on a pair, junior guard Laura Johnson converted another for Lasell that pushed the lead to six points with 19 seconds left.
 
The loss spoiled the debut of first-year 5-foot-11 inch sophomore transfer forward Marissa Nudd (Colchester), who became the first player (29^th overall) to score as many as 30 points in her Eastern debut. Nudd led all players with 31 points, going 10-of-14 from both the floor and foul line. As one of three Eastern players to play all but four minutes, Nudd also added four rebounds and an assist. As a freshman last year at Southern Connecticut State University, Nudd scored ten points in eight minutes over four games off the bench for the 19-13 Owls.
 
Salato finished with 17 points, 12 in the second half. She also topped Eastern with nine rebounds (seven in the second half). In her debut, the 5-foot-5 inch Cassesse had eight points (six coming from the foul line), five rebounds, three assists and three steals.
 
Cerruti (23) and Major (22) combined for over half of Lasell's points, going 17-of-33 from the floor and 7-of-8 from the stripe, and each sinking two three-pointers, with Johnson pulling down a game-high 12 rebounds.
 
A year ago at Geissler Gym in the first meeting between the programs, the Warriors subdued Lasell, 80-72 in overtime, with the Lasers going on to a 16-9 season (9-2 at home) one year removed from 6-19. In their season-opener Saturday, the Lasers scored 95 points but lost by five at Nichols College.
 
This weekend at the Trinity College Tip-Off Tournament at Ray Oosting Gymnasium, Eastern faces two teams which last year earned at-large bids to the NCAA tournament in host Trinity College (Friday at 5 p.m.) and Springfield College (Saturday at 2 p.m.). The game will be the season-opener for the Bantams, who finished 19-8 a year ago. Springfield, 1-1, was 22-6 a year ago.
 
The Warriors are 13-5 all-time against Trinity, but have lost four of the last five against the Bantams. Eastern and Springfield have each won four times in the eight-game series, the Pride routing the Warriors, 82-54, in the last meeting at Springfield three years ago at Blake Arena.