WELLESLEY, Mass. – Sophomore Anna Cahill (New London, N.H.) scored a career-high 15 points to lead Wellesley College basketball to a 68-28 New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) victory over visiting Mount Holyoke College on Saturday afternoon at Gracia Mangano Martore '73 Court.
The Blue improve to 2-6 on the year, with both of the team's victories coming at home, and 1-2 in NEWMAC play. Mount Holyoke drops to 0-8 overall, and 0-3 in conference, with the setback.
Cahill was one of four Wellesley players to finish in double-figures, shooting 5-10 from the floor. Senior Chelsi Scott (Portland, Mich.) added 13 points, shooting 7-9 from the free-throw line, while finishing one rebound shy of a double-double with a game-high nine. Sophomore Kayla Jang (South Pasadena, Calif.) and first year Brenna Butler (Smithtown, N.Y.) each added 12 points, with Jang also dishing out a game-high five assists for the Blue.
Mount Holyoke senior Genelle Green (Windsor, Conn.) scored a team-best 10 points for the Lyons, finishing as the only Mount Holyoke player in double figures. Green also pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Classmate Siyao Sui (Shenzhen, China) chipped in with eight points, while junior Xajaah Williams-Flores (The Bronx, N.Y.) added four.
Wellesley led from wire-to-wire, opening the game on a 13-0 run while holding the Lyons without a bucket until Sui converted a layup with 3:02 left in the first quarter.
The Blue closed out the first with a 17-6 advantage and continued to increase their lead in the second quarter. Wellesley eventually carried a 38-15 edge into the break, following a second quarter that saw the Blue hit 9-12 shots from the floor to outscore the Lyons 21-9.
Wellesley shot 47% from the field in the contest, knocking down eight three point attempts and scoring 24 points off turnovers. The Blue also cleaned up the glass, out rebounding the visitors by a 42-26 margin, while scoring 20 second-chance points and 28 points in the paint.
The Blue climbed to their biggest advantage with 2:24 remaining in the third quarter, when an and-one from Cahill put Wellesley up 57-17. The 40-point difference would hold for the rest of the game, as Wellesley closed out the 68-28 victory.
Today's contest concludes the first semester schedule for the Blue. Wellesley will return to action in 2016, when they take on Colby-Sawyer at 3:00 PM on January 2 at the Westfield State Holiday Tournament. Mount Holyoke will play at non-conference MCLA in their next outing on Wednesday, December 9, at 5:30 PM.
Game story courtesy of Miles Roberts, Wellesley Sports Information Director.
