South Hadley, Mass. - November 12, 2019 - The Mount Holyoke College basketball team fell to visiting Worcester State University, 65-22, in non-conference play at Howard Gymnasium on Tuesday evening. 

Leading the Lyons was Ellie Hayward (Westmoreland, N.H.) and Annika Brooks (Portland, Maine), who each had five points, while Brooks pulled down a team-best eight rebounds. Mikayla McEwen (South Hadley, Mass.) played a solid 27 minutes off the bench for Mount Holyoke College and picked up a pair of points to go along with seven gritty rebounds down low. 

The Lyons were just 9-for-50 (18.0%) from the field in the setback compared to Worcester State's 28-for-60 (46.7%) shooting performance. The Lyons forced the Lancers into 24 turnovers and turned them into 12 points. 

Worcester State started the game with the first 15 points to take an 15-0 lead over the Lyons, before Mount Holyoke College answered with seven points of their own, started on a three-pointer from Olivia Aries (Brewster, N.Y.) at the 3:46 mark of the opening frame. After Aries' three, Ellie Hayward (Westmoreland, N.H.) and McEwen converted back-to-back jumpers to pull the Lyons with eight, making it 15-7, Lancers, with 2:59 on the clock. From there, the visitors would end the frame on a 6-0 run to control a 21-7 lead after 10 minutes of play.

Starting off the second quarter, Hayward converted a lay-up 55 seconds in to pull the Lyons back to within 12, before Brooks scored her first points of the game at the 6:23 mark to make it 23-11, Lancers. Using the momentum, Worcester State took a 33-11 lead with 4:18 remaining and turned that into a 39-11 lead at the halftime break.

Worcester State's Mya Mosley (Worcester, Mass.) drilled a three pointer to open the second half, giving the Lancers a 42-11 lead, before Kelly Lynch (Quincy, Mass.) converted a lay-up in transition for the Lyons first points of the second half. Lynch would go on to nail a jumper at the 6:13 mark, before Kyra Sanborn-Burch (Tariffville, Conn.) and Brooks both scored points down the stretch of the third quarter.

Sanborn-Burch made a free-throw with 7:41 remaining that made it 56-20, Lancers, before Brooks dropped in a lay-up with 3:35 to go, marking Mount Holyoke College's last points of the contest.

With the loss, the Lyons are now 0-2 to start the season while Worcester State improves to 2-1.

Up next, Mount Holyoke College will travel to the Bard College Tip-Off Classic and will take on Bay Path University on Saturday, November 16 at 1 p.m.

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