By Kyra Tolley Interim Asst. Sports Editor Women’s basketball defeated the Fitchburg State University Falcons 88-46 in a conference matchup Jan. 29. This win brought their overall record to 11-7 and their conference record to 4-2. Senior Chloe Rayko started the game with a three-point shot in the first 5 seconds to give an immediate momentum boost to the Rams. Sophomore Ava Mckeon and junior Abigail Martin followed Rayko’s first shot by making one layup each. Captain Katie Haselton, a senior, also made a successful drive to the hoop for a layup and later contributed an additional three points with a jump shot from outside the arc. Freshman Faith Greene proved to be a force under the hoop when she grabbed four defensive rebounds in the first quarter and capitalized off an offensive rebound to score a layup. Rayko and freshman Bridget Trainor scored back-to-back three pointers to bring Framingham to an early 20-0 lead. Fitchburg was able to make a free throw for their first point of the game, but junior Kiara Cerruti responded by sinking a three-point shot. She then closed out the first quarter with a layup to bring the score to 27-3. The first action of the second quarter came as Haselton made a layup despite getting tripped up on her way to the hoop. She then made both of her free throws to extend the Rams’ lead. The teams traded layups, with Fitchburg making two, while Greene and Haselton cumulatively made three to increase Framingham’s lead to 35-7. Sophomore Bridget Capone showed her versatility when she capitalized on a steal to gain 2 points for Framingham and an additional 3 in their next possession. Cerruti made her mark in the second quarter by making two jumpshots in 30 seconds after coming off the bench earlier in the game. At halftime, the score was 50-16. Fitchburg started the third quarter on the front foot after a steal and a subsequent three-pointer sank in the first 30 seconds, but the Rams did not relent. Haselton dribbled from one end of the court to the other and gained another 2 points for Framingham. A long pass from Haselton gave Martin an opportunity to score in the paint, but her layup bounced off the rim. Greene took advantage of the rebound and successfully went up for a layup that gave the Rams a 58-21 lead. In the last 2 minutes of the quarter, Fitchburg began to press, but they were unable to stop the Rams’ offense. After breaking the press, Cerruti made a three-point shot to end the third quarter 44 points ahead. Cerruti continued to score throughout the fourth quarter and tallied 18 points in total for the game. Despite Fitchburg outscoring Framingham 18 to 16 in the final quarter, the Falcons were unable to overcome the deficit the Rams established early in the game. Framingham showed dominance in the rebounding game, racking up 26 offensive and 39 defensive rebounds. The Rams collectively amassed more points against the Falcons than any other opponent they’ve played this season. This included 42 points from players coming off the bench. Greene, who won MASCAC Rookie of the Week five times this season, had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds in just 17 minutes of playing time. Greene noted her dedication, passion, and resilience and said that understanding that she needs to keep going when days are tough has helped her succeed in her rookie season. Head Coach Walter Paschal reached 400 wins in his coaching career at Framingham State. Paschal said he attributes this milestone to the players he has coached. He said, “I’ve got three great [assistant coaches] who all played for me and they came back to coach, so that’s what it’s all about.” Haselton described conference games as “big” and said making a statement early on is important. “I think we did that well tonight. So just to continue that with every conference game going forward.” Paschal said, “All of them played well in the last three MASCAC games. They came out and threw the first punch in all three games, and they got three [wins].” Currently, the Rams are on a four-game win streak. Their next matchup is a conference game against Westfield State University at home Feb. 1.