WESTFIELD — Peabody native Melissa Gray has had no trouble making the jump from high school to the college basketball this winter.
In her freshman season for Westfield State, Gray has emerged as a key piece to an Owls’ formula that has seen Westfield continue the recent success it has earned under head coach Andrea Bertini, a Salem native in her 13th year at the helm of the program.
Gray, a forward, has started 10 of 21 games and posted averages of 16.7 minutes, 9.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.5 steals per contest. She’s shooting 33.5 percent from the floor and 63.6 percent from the charity stripe.
“Coming into Westfield State, it’s been a big adjustment,” Gray, a former two-sport athlete at Peabody High who also played volleyball, said. “I’ve gotten used to it now. It’s grown on me and I’ve made the adjustments. In high school, you always get to play with a couple of good players. In college, you’re always going against really good players and that makes it fun for me.”
Last week, Gray’s success came to fruition when she was named Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week. She repeated as conference rookie of the week this week, while also bringing home New England Women’s Basketball Association (NEWBA) Rookie of the Week honors.
Gray scored a career-high 22 points in a loss to Bridgewater State last Saturday, shooting 57.1 percent from both the field (8-of-14) and beyond the arc (4-of-7) while making both of her free throw attempts and adding two steals and two rebounds.
“I was thrilled about winning rookie of the week,” Gray, who played four years of varsity basketball at Peabody, said. “It’s such an honor. I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and my coaches. They’re always pushing me to get better and better. I’m very thankful for them.
“I’ve been blessed with the amount of minutes I’ve gotten this year,” Gray added. “I wasn’t expecting that. What makes it easier for me is the great teammates that I have. They’re all very supportive on and off the court. They encourage me to keep shooting.”
While Gray’s seeing success on the individual level, the Owls are making the most of her game-by-game progression as they threaten for their third consecutive MASCAC regular season crown. Westfield, 14-7 on the season, is 8-1 against MASCAC opponents. The Owls are currently atop the conference standings with a slight edge over Framingham State (7-2).
Part of the reason Westfield’s off to another strong start is the team’s efficiency on both ends of the floor. The Owls currently rank third in Division III in points per game at 86.1 and are tops in steals per contest at 20.9 and turnover margin at +17.1
“I think our biggest strength has been our ability to move the ball up the court fast,” Gray said. “Coach Bertini loves to push the ball up the court and we love to get a shot up as quickly as we can. We love to run the ball up the floor and we’ve done a good job at making the right passes.”
Gray noted that another key to Westfield’s success this winter has been its ability to click as a unit. Although it took time for the Owls to get there, the team has made proper adjustments throughout the season and the results are showing. Westfield’s 7-1 in its last eight games.
“I have to say that it was tough at first, all playing together and getting used to our system and style of play,” Gray said. “I think we all have it down now and we’re working great together. The intensity on our bench really helps us and it gets us riled up. We’re always encouraging one another and getting each other pumped up.”
As the Owls approach the closing stretch of their regular season, they’ll have to continue their recent surge of strong play in order to remain atop the conference standings. The string of games at the end of Westfield’s schedule won’t be an easy one as the Owls have clashes against Salem, Fitchburg and Worcester before moving on to the MASCAC Tournament.
“We just look at the next game and focus on that,” Gray said. “We’re focusing on getting better each day of practice and beating the next team on our schedule.”
Gray and the Owls are back on the court on Saturday afternoon (1) when they host Salem State.
