SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. – Powered by a game-best 14 points from senior guard Meghan Fornaro, the United States Coast Guard Academy defeated Mount Holyoke College, 68-24, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) basketball action on Wednesday evening. With the victory, the Bears move to 11-8 overall and 8-3 in conference play, while the Lyons are now 0-19 and 0-11 in the NEWMAC.
Fornaro (Charlton, Mass./Shepherd Hill) dropped in 14 points, six boards, two assists and a steal to lead CGA. Senior forward Torie Sutherland (Houston, Texas/Clear Lake) dropped in 10 points and boasted game-high numbers in rebounds (11), assists (3) and blocks (2). Sophomore forward Gill Gerton (Lorton, Va./Bishop Dennis J. O'Connell) had nine points while also notching seven boards and two blocks, while first year guard Jayla Joyner (Charlotte, N.C./Hickory Grove Christian) posted a game-best three steals.
For the Lyons, senior guard Genelle Green (Windsor, Conn./Miss Porter's School) had seven points with two steals. Classmate and forward Siyao Sui (ShenZhen, China/St. Mary's School (N.C.) added six points and five boards, while sophomore guard Peyton Burr (Fayston, Vt./Harwood Union) had five points, four boards and an assist. First year guard Leah Hodges (New Haven, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral) added four points and team-best seven rebounds.
The opening quarter belonged to the Bears as they held the home team scoreless, heading into the second frame with a 21-0 advantage. Gerton paced the effort for Coast Guard in the frame, dropping in nine points, including a three-pointer with 1:01 to play.
Back-to-back jumpers by Sui got the Lyons on the board in the second quarter, but MHC would be unable to hold off Fornaro, who notched three straight buckets and sank an ensuing free throw to make it a 38-8 advantage for the visitors with 2:01 to play. The Lyons would get one back, but jumper from Fornaro ended the half with Coast Guard up 43-9.
Mount Holyoke opened the third quarter with momentum as consecutive buckets from Sui and Burr cut the deficit to 43-14. A layup by Green with 6:25 to go dropped it to a 27-point deficit for the home team, but back-to-back layups from Sutherland, followed by a pair of three's by junior Amanda Roy (Stonington, Conn./Stonington) gave CGA its largest lead of the contest, heading into the final quarter up 55-22.
Coast Guard outscored MHC by a 13-2 margin in the final period as first year guard Kristina Bynum (Portsmouth, Va./Churchland) had a team-best seven points.
Both teams continue NEWMAC action on Saturday at 1pm as Mount Holyoke heads to Emerson, while Coast Guard hosts Babson.
