By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University women's basketball team kept its Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference winning streak going Wednesday night.

The Bears defeated Westfield State University, 73-66, at the Tinsley Center for their 16th straight MASCAC regular-season and tournament victory dating back to a loss in the conference opener in January 2025 to Salem State.

First-place BSU improved to 5-0 in the conference and 6-9 overall following a 1-9 start to the season.

Westfield State is now 11-5 overall and drops to 3-2 in the MASCAC. The Bears have defeated the Owls in 10 of the last 12 meetings.

Freshman center Emilie von der Linden recorded her fifth double-double with career highs of 18 points and 15 rebounds. von der Linden connected on 7 of 10 field goals and six of her 15 rebounds came off the offensive glass..

Senior Haley Burchhardt (Schenectady, N.Y.) also had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds (four offensive) plus three assists for the Bears, who never trailed and led by as many as 15 in the second quarter.

It was Burchhardt's first double-double since recording one in the MASCAC championship game against Framingham State last season when she had 26 points and 11 rebounds.

Also in double figures for BSU was sophomore Reese Bartlett (Norwood, Mass.) with 12 points, four rebounds and four assists while junior Sophie Bradbury (East Bridgewater, Mass.) had eight points and six assists to go along with a career-best 11 rebounds (five offensive) and sophomore Bridgitt O'Sullivan-Van Etten (Cumberland, R.I.) chipped in with seven rebounds and six points.

Westfield State, which holds a 51-47 lead in the all-time series, had two players score 12 points. Sophomore Kayley Downie (Easthampton, Mass.) made three 3-pointers while freshman Sophia Rockwood (Windsor, Vt.) made two 3-pointers.

Sophomore Alexa Davis (Springfield, Mass.) scored 10 points with five rebounds while senior Tavi Williams (Springfield, Mass.) contributed nine rebounds and three assists.

BSU made 40 percent of its shots while limiting Westfield State to 33 percent. The teams struggled from long distance with the Bears going 5-for-25 and the Owls 9-for-35.

Foul shooting was troublesome for both teams as Bridgewater misssed 13 of its 29 foul shots while Westfield was just 11-for-21 at the line. The teams combined for 47 turnovers with the Bears having 27.

BSU outrebounded the Owls, 59-38, and had a 40-22 edge in points in the paint.

The Bears jumped to a 23-12 lead after one quarter as the Owls didn't score their second field goal until 4:12 remained in the period.

BSU was up, 19-12, when Burchhardt hit a 3-pointer and sophomore Chloe Azoff (Sandwich, Mass.) hit two foul shots in the final 1:48.

The Bears struggled in the second quarter, scoring just eight points, and held a 31-29 lead at the break.

After opening a 29-16 lead on a layup by senior Mairead Gallagher (Bridgewater, Mass.), BSU was outscored, 11-0, and led, 29-27, with 17 seconds to go in the half.

The Bears missed seven shots and had six turnovers in a span of 6:18.

A Bartlett layup with 17 seconds remaining ended the drought.

Westfield State was within one on two occasions early in the second half after at 3-pointer by Downie and a layup by Williams.

Ahead, 37-36, BSU scored five points in a row and two foul shots by Bartlett with 14 seconds left put the Bears ahead, 47-41, going into the last quarter.

The lead went to 62-49 with 3:12 to go when Barlett made a 3-pointer and the Bears were ahead, 66-55, on a von der Linden layup with 2:12 left.

Westfield State closed to seven with less than two minutes remaining, but von der Linden scored five points in a row to allow BSU to pull away.

The Bears are on the road Saturday for a noon game against Framingham State. Westfield State plays at Salem State at noon on Saturday.