THE BASICS

Lesley University, 51 vs. Wentworth Inst. of Tech., 49

Records: 
Lesley University Lynx (1-3, 0-0 NAC)
WIT Leopards (0-3, 0-0 CNE) 

Location: Lexington, Mass. – Minuteman HS Gym

Date: Saturday, November 15, 2025

THE LEAD— Senior guard Leila Chisholm (Santa Barbara, Calif.) buried a pull-up three in transition with 3.1 seconds to play to lift Lesley University past Wentworth Institute of Technology, 51-49, Saturday afternoon in non-conference NCAA Division III women's basketball action.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• WIT's Taylor Garabedian opened the scoring on the Leopards' first possession of the game. She scored the next three points and Mia Luna Zayas added a jumper to give Wentworth an early 7-2 lead. Madalynn Biagi's triple got the Lynx within two points at the midway point of the first. Zayas and Gianna Gioia each scored as Wentworth pushed the lead to five points at the end of the first quarter.
• Lesley first year Shayla King (Ramstein, Germany) scored the only bucket in the opening two and a half minutes to get Lesley on the board in the second quarter. Elise Ayer's jumper pushed the lead back to five before King answered with another jumper. A pair of free throws from senior Leila Chisholm (Santa Barbara, Calif.) and a make from junior Savannah Gravitt (Richmond Hill, Ga.) gave Lesley the 18-17 lead with just over four minutes to play in the half. The Lynx extended the lead to five before back-to-back scores from Zayas made it a one-point game heading into the half.
• Lesley's lead grew to six behind Gravitt's triple and the defense kept Wentworth off the board for almost three minutes to start the third. Gioia's layup got the Leopards back within four, but free throws from Chisholm pushed the lead back to seven. Zayas hit a jumper at the midway point of the quarter and Ayer hit one of two free throws to make it a three-point game. Tita Rana's jumper with three minutes left cut it to a one-point game with the hosts narrowly in front. The Lynx took a 35-34 lead into the final frame.
• Rana and Garabedian knocked down early shots in the fourth to give Wentworth the 38-35 lead two minutes into the final frame. One of two free throws from Garabedian and another layup from Zayas gave the Leopards a six-point lead, forcing Lesley into a timeout. The Lynx knocked down a couple of shots, but the Leopards held a 47-44 lead heading into the final two minutes of the game.
• Garabedian's layup with 57 seconds left restored the three-point lead for Wentworth, but the Lynx answered with a layup from sophomore Alawnah Dunda (Fort Ann, N.Y.) to make it a one-point game with 41 seconds to play. Chisholm's three with three seconds to play was the difference and the Leopards fell 51-49.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

• Dunda paced LU with a game-high 16 points, adding six boards, three steals and two blocks.
• Gravitt dropped 11 points to go along with five rebounds.
• Chisholm's line closed at eight points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block.
• Garabedian posted a double-double with 11 points and a game-high 15 boards.
• Rana finished with seven points, three steals and three assists. Ayer added seven rebounds to go with six points while Gioia scored eight points with three assists and six rebounds.
• The victory marks the first collegiate head coaching "W" for LU Head Coach Marcel Pettway.

UP NEXT

• After three road games to open the year, Lesley will take on Wentworth on Saturday, November 15 at 2:00 PM in their home-opener at Minuteman High.
• The Mariners will look to build on the performance when they return to action Friday, November 14, hosting crosstown rival Connecticut College in non-league play at 5:00 PM.

*Release content courtesy of WIT Athletic Communications staff