WORCESTER, Mass. - Four players reached double-figures in lifting Clark University to victory over Mount Holyoke College in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action on Wednesday evening. The Cougars move to 11-13 overall and are 7-8 in conference play. The Lyons slip to 0-23 and 0-15 in the NEWMAC.
For Clark, Ogechi Ezemma notched a game-best 13 points, completing the double-double with a game-high 11 rebounds. Kacey Legare added 12 points with a game-best seven assists and three steals, while Maya Kerstetter added 11 points, seven boards and three assists. Hannah Favaloro contributed double-figures as well with a 10-point effort on the night.
The Lyons were paced by 12 points from junior captain Katlyn Grover, who also had three boards and an assist. Senior captain Zahkeyah Allen notched seven points with a carom and an assist, while sophomore Raquel Fitzpatrick had six points and three boards. Sophomore GraceAnne Woods added five boards, three points and a game-best three blocks.
It was a tight contest at the opening tip-off as a three-pointer from Grover helped but the visiting Lyons deficit to one (6-7) with 6:14 to play in the frame. Despite the momentum, MHC was unable to hold off the Clark offense, which was paced by four points over the final minute from Hannah Favaloro for a 24-8 advantage.
The second quarter saw Grover once again nail a shot from downtown to cut the Clark lead to 26-11, but shots in the paint and four straight free throw shots sent Clark into halftime with a solid 21-point lead.
Clark continued to take advantage of untimely fouls by the visitors, capitalizing on their chances at the free throw line to add to the lead. Back-to-back shots from Allen helped close the gap (49-19), but a three-pointer with a second remaining in the third by Cori Ouellette pushed the margin back to 56-21 heading into the final stanza.
Grover once again hit from three-point range with 7:15 to play, turning it into a 62-24 game, and Woods nand Allen each poured in buckets, but Clark continued to take advantage in the paint with a pair of layups late. Allen added a layup in the final 41 seconds to conclude the scoring for both teams.
Mount Holyoke concludes its regular season schedule on Saturday when it hosts Emerson at the Howard Gymnasium at 1pm. The Lyons will also honor their two graduating seniors.
