Basketball Dumps MIT, 42-29
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Jan. 16, 2010) – Powered by first year guard Angelica Pascual, the Mount Holyoke College women’s basketball team topped New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) foe MIT 42-29 this afternoon at the Rockwell Cage. With their second straight win over the Engineers, the Lyons snapped a six game slide.
Pascual recorded her second career double-double on 14 points and 12 rebounds to lead the way for Mount Holyoke. The Lyons also received a boost from senior guard Erin Cain, who knocked down all six of her free throw attempts en route to 13 points. Senior forward Jess Olson pulled down a game best 14 boards. Meanwhile, sophomore forward Tricia Chase added six points and eight rebounds. As a team, Mount Holyoke converted 28.0% (14-50) of its shots from the field and 81.3% (13-16) of its free throws. The Lyons outrebounded MIT 49-40.
MIT struggled throughout, making just 19.3% (11-57) of its attempts from the floor. The hosts were paced by first year forward Anna Merrifield, who tallied eight points and 10 boards Senior guard Sally Simpson posted 10 points, while first years Lauren Sascha Burton and Stephanie Cooke pulled down eight rebounds apiece. It was the Engineers ninth straight loss and 12th overall. They are now winless in eight league games.
The teams went back and forth over the first 11 minutes with neither side leading by more than five points. MIT trailed 15-12 following a jumper by Merrifield at the 9:48 mark, but Mount Holyoke then took control with a 14-0 run to close out the half. The Lyons went into the locker room with a 29-12 advantage. Cain led all scorers with nine points at the break. Merrifield had seven for the hosts.
Mount Holyoke extended its cushion to 36-14 on a conventional three point play Pascual 3:32 into the second stanza. MIT rallied for the next ten points to slice the deficit to 36-25 with just under nine minutes remaining in regulation, but the Lyons answered with a 4-0 spurt to put things out of reach. The margin never dipped below double digits after the intermission.
The Lyons (5-10, 3-5 NEWMAC) will return to action on Wednesday, when they host the Coast Guard Academy for a NEWMAC tilt beginning at 7:00 p.m.