BABSON PARK, Mass. (Dec. 1, 2012) - Powered by a double-double from leading scorer Sarah Collins, the Babson College women's basketball team grabbed a 63-43 victory over Mount Holyoke College in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action on Saturday. With the victory, the 23rd-ranked Beavers remain perfect on the season with a 6-0 record and 2-0 mark in the league. The visiting Lyons slip to 1-4 overall and 0-2 in the NEWMAC.
It was a back-and-forth battle to open the game as both teams fought for an early edge. Following the fifth tie of the half through the first eight minutes, the homestanding Beavers gained the advantage as they went up by three (18-15) on a pair of free throws from Collins with 9:47 left to play.
The momentum would be shortlived as a pair of free throws from MHC sophomore Amber Legare gave the Lyons the lead (19-18) at the 8:27 mark. A jumper by first year Siyao Sui put the visitors up by three (21-18), but consecutive layups by Collins regained the advantage for Babson (22-21) with 5:31 left in the opening half.
Senior Angelica Pasucal tied things up for the seventh time in the half at the 3:46 mark, making a layup to bring it to 23-all, but the Beavers' Linnett Graber drained a shot of her own and Collins added a bucket to make it a four-point differencial with 1:30 on the clock. A three-pointer from sophomore Kate Karraker pulled Mount Holyoke close in the final seconds and the Lyons headed into the locker room tied after Pascual nailed a shot of her own from downtown to make it a 29-29 game.
Babson set the tone early in the second half, building up a five point lead (36-31) on a layup by Graber. The Beavers continued to capitalize on the Lyons mistakes and make it a 15-point advantage with 12:44 on a bucket by Collins.
The Beavers took their biggest lead thus far at the 9:14 mark, going up by 21 (54-33) on a shot by Katerina Mallios, but MHC continued to fight back as a combined five points from Pascual, including a three-pointer, made it a 57-40 game with 6:24 remaining.
Mount Holyoke was able to take advantage of several Babson fouls late in the half as both Karraker and Pascual sank shots from the line, but it proved to be not enough as the Beavers maintained their double-digit lead for victory.
Leading Babson was Collins, who poured in a game-best 21 points and 11 rebounds with two assists, two blocks and three steals. Graber added 16 points to go along with four caroms and three assists.
For the Lyons, Pascual had a team-high 17 points with seven rebounds, two assists and a steal. Karraker added 10 points, while Legare added six points, six rebounds and a game-high two blocks.
The Beavers return to action on Tuesday when they host Wellesley in NEWMAC action at 7pm. Mount Holyoke is also on the court on Tuesday, traveling to Clark for a 7pm conference game.
Photo courtesy of Frank Poulin.
