Box Score
WILLIMANTIC, Conn. – Junior forward Marissa Nudd (Colchester) tied the 33-year-old Eastern Connecticut State University women's basketball game record of 36 points and the Warriors exploded for 47 second-half points in pulling away for an 82-52 Little East Conference victory over Vermont State University Castleton Wednesday afternoon at Francis E. Geissler Gymnasium.
 
Since an 0-4 start, Eastern (7-8, 4-2 LEC) has won seven of 11, averaging over 76 points in its last four victories. With its 15^th win over Castleton (5-9, 1-5 LEC) in the 17-game series, Eastern pulls into a three-way tie for third place in the LEC with the University of Massachusetts Boston and Rhode Island College with ten conference regular-season games remaining.
 
Nudd's 36 points ties the program record set by Alumni Hall of Famer Missy Kowolenko at Rhode Island College on February 11, 1993. Nudd, ranked third in the LEC with an 18.3 scoring average, has now posted the program's second straight 30-point game. In her Eastern debut on Nov. 13, 2024, Nudd scored 31 points on 10-of-14 field goals and 10-of-14 free throws.
 
Against Castleton, Nudd poured in 26 of the team's 35 first-half points when she was 10-of-11 from the floor (2-of-2 from distance) and 4-of-4 from the foul line. In 14 second-half minutes, Nudd scored ten points on 5-of-9 field goal shooting. Nudd reached 36 points with an inside basket that gave Eastern a 21-point lead with 7:37 left. She had one opportunity to break the record before being lifted with 5:33 left when she grabbed an offensive rebound but had her putback roll off the rim.
 
Castleton, whose five starters played all but 38 minutes, gave the Warriors all they could handle in the first half and led by one, 36-35, at the break.  Trailing by one with four minutes left in the first half, Nudd scored seven straight points on a three-pointer and two inside buckets – first-year wing Maddie Topa (New Hartford) setting up two of the bucket with a defensive rebound and assist -- to give Eastern a six-point lead with 2:36 left. The Spartans didn't buckle, however, answering with the final seven points of the half, with junior guard Schuyler Nolan beating the buzzer inside to give Castleton its one-point halftime lead.
 
While Nudd outscored her teammates by nine in the first half, she got plenty of help after the opening minutes of the second half. Trailing by three, Eastern ripped off 25 of the next 29 points – Nudd contributing eight of her ten second-half points  in the first three minutes of that run– in bolting to an 18-point, 60-42 lead with four minutes left in the third quarter.
 
Behind Nudd's ten second-half points, sophomore point guard Liv Cassesse (Wallingford) had nine points, four assists and four steals in the second half, with Topa adding eight points and three steals and first-year forward Katelyn Novak (Colchester) – a former teammate of Nudd's at Bacon Academy – adding eight points and two steals. Earlier Wednesday, Topa was named NEWBA Rookie-of-the-Week for the third time this year.

In the game, Nudd added five rebounds and two steals in 32 minutes, with Cassesse (11 points, six assists, six steals and five rebounds), Topa (11 points, four steals, three rebounds and two assists) and Novak (ten points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals) providing plenty of support.
 
All 15 roster players saw time for Eastern, with sophomore forward Isabella Romero (Peabody, MA) grabbing five rebounds in 11 minutes. First-year sophomore forward Juliana Iovino (East Haven) made her debut, grabbing one rebound in three minutes.  First-year guard Emilia Maria-Babcock (Everett, MA) recorded her first career point with a basket and free throw. She also collected three rebounds in four minutes, while junior post player Grace Smith (Willington) scored her first points of the season with a bucket (and had a rebound) in three minutes.
 
Nudd's 36 points are the second-most by an LEC player this year, two behind UMass Dartmouth's Yasmine Santos, who recorded her total Jan. 6 in a 79-71 loss at Eastern. There have now been 31 30-point games in program history.
 
Eastern visits unbeaten LEC leader University of Southern Maine (13-1, 6-0 LEC) Saturday at 1 p.m. The Huskies won their sixth straight home game Wednesday and tenth straight overall with an 81-54 victory over the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth