Springfield Holds Off Basketball, 45-39
???SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (Dec. 2, 2009) – Paced by junior Amelia Sapowsky, the Springfield College women’s basketball team held on for a 45-39 victory over Mount Holyoke College this evening at Blake Arena. The forward racked up 13 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, four blocked shots and three steals, as the Pride downed the Lyons for the sixth time in a row. It was the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) opener for both sides.
Springfield (2-3, 1-0 NEWMAC) also received solid production from sophomore forward Sara Plocharsky, who came off the bench to post ten points and nine boards. Sophomore guard Kelly Murphy tallied eight points, while classmate Andrea Butler added five points and five assists. The Pride found the win column despite converting just 27.7% (18-65) of their attempts from the field and 13.3% (2-15) of their three point tries. They were outrebounded 50-47.
Mount Holyoke also struggled offensively, making just 22.2% (12-54) of its shots from the floor. The Lyons were forced into 24 turnovers. They were led by senior guard Erin Cain, who amassed a game best 17 points on 5-of-12 shooting from floor. Sophomore guard Christine Chancy registered nine points and 12 boards, while senior forward Jess Olson added five points and a team high 10 rebounds.
Both squads recorded 16 points in a low scoring first half. After falling behind 9-3 in the early going, Mount Holyoke battled back to knot things up at nine behind back to back treys by Cain and first year Angelica Pascual. Cain’s third three pointer of the opening frame gave the Lyons a 12-11 edge at the 7:48 mark. The guests expanded their lead to 14-11 on their next possession, as Chancy buried a jumper. The Pride then closed out the half with a 5-2 run to pull even. Cain led all scorers with nine points at the break. Sapowsky had seven for the Pride. She also pulled down nine rebounds before the intermission.
Springfield used an 8-0 run in the early stages of the second stanza to gain control of the contest. A layin by Plocharsky put the hosts in front 27-19 at the 13:04 mark. The Pride still led by eight points (34-26) following a three pointer by Murphy with 9:20 remaining in regulation.
Refusing to go away, Mount Holyoke exploded for an 8-0 spurt of its own. Cain got the rally started with a short jumper. She then drilled her fourth trey of the evening to slice the deficit to 34-31. A three pointer by Chancy knotted things up at 34-34 with just over four minutes to go.
From there it was all Springfield. The hosts ran off 10 unanswered points to put things away. Plocharsky netted six of her 10 points during the rally.
Mount Holyoke (2-3, 0-1 NEWMAC) will return to action on Saturday, when it hosts Wellesley College at 2:00 p.m.