Basketball Completes Sweep of MIT, 60-50

| Senior Day Insert | Pink Zone Story

SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. (Feb. 13, 2010) – Using a balanced scoring attack, the Mount Holyoke College women’s basketball team picked up a 60-50 triumph over New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) foe MIT this afternoon at the Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium. With the win, the Lyons completed the season sweep of the Engineers and clinched a spot in the upcoming NEWMAC Tournament.

Prior to the contest, Mount Holyoke seniors Erin Cain, Jess Olson and Kate Shafir were honored for their contributions to the program over the past four years. Most notably, the trio helped the Lyons to their first ever NEWMAC Tournament Championship during the 2006-07 season. The squad became the first in program history to advance to the NCAA National Tournament.

Mount Holyoke also partnered with the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) to raise awareness in the fight against breast cancer through the “Pink Zone” initiative during today’s game. “Pink Zone” is a global, unified effort for the WBCA nation of coaches to assist in raising breast cancer awareness on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond.

Members of both teams sported pink shooting shirts during warmups, and proceeds from admission fees to the contest will be donated to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund. Fans were encouraged to wear pink and contribute to research initiatives.

The Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund is a 501 c(3) charitable organization committed to being a part of finding an answer in the fight against cancer through raising money for scientific research, assisting the underserved and unifying people for a common cause.

Four players reached double digits in the scoring column for the Lyons, who converted 46.8% (22-47) of their shots from the field and 82.4% (14-17) of their free throw attempts. They were paced by first year guard Angelica Pascual, who collected 14 points and nine rebounds. Olson tallied 11 points, while Cain and sophomore forward Tricia Chase added 10 apiece. Cain matched her career high with seven assists in the contest. Mount Holyoke finished with a 36-24 edge on the glass.

First year forward Anna Merrifield recorded 12 points and eight boards to lead the way for MIT. The Engineers also received a boost from guards Sally Simpson and Lauren Sascha Burton, who netted nine points apiece. As a team, the visitors shot 36.5% (19-52) from the floor and drained four three pointers.

Neither side led by more than six points in a first half that saw four ties and three lead changes. Mount Holyoke jumped out to a 12-6 advantage midway through the opening frame behind six Pascual points. MIT scored the next five points and grabbed a 20-18 edge following a pair of free throws by junior forward Kristen Whaley.

The Engineers enjoyed a 22-20 at the 1:41 mark, but Mount Holyoke reeled off the next six points to take a 26-22 cushion into the locker room. Pascual highlighted the rally with a baseline jumper at the buzzer. She led all scorers with eight points at the break. Simpson had seven for the guests.

Mount Holyoke pulled away with a 12-2 spurt in the early stages of the second stanza. The Lyons stretched their cushion to 44-32 on a pair of Pascual free throws with 13:11 remaining in regulation. The first year registered six more points during the run, which spanned just four minutes. From there, MIT sliced the deficit to six points on two occasions, but it was not enough.

Both squads will resume their NEWMAC schedules on the road Wednesday night. Mount Holyoke (8-15, 6-10 NEWMAC) will travel to the Coast Guard Academy for a contest beginning at 7:00 p.m., while MIT (5-17, 3-13 NEWMAC) will visit WPI at 7:30 p.m.


The Mount Holyoke basketball team participated in the WBCA's "Pink Zone" initiative at this afternoon's contest. In addition, Erin Cain, Jess Olson and Kate Shafir (front row, center) were honored prior to the game during Senior Day festivities.