SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. -- MIT ran out to a 23-4 lead after one period and cruised to an 84-35 NEWMAC women's basketball victory over Mount Holyoke College on Saturday in Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium.
The Engineers (15-8, 7-1 NEWMAC) held on to second place in the NEWMAC and extended their current winning streak to nine straight games. The host Lyons (2-21, 0-8 NEWMAC) dropped their eighth in a row.
MIT scored the first 18 points of the first quarter, taking control of the game early behind the play of forward Kamsi Nwogu. Nwogu had eight of the Engineers' 18 points in that span and finished the quarter with 10 points on 3-3 shooting from the field and 4-4 shooting on free throws, to go with three steals and four rebounds.
Mount Holyoke first-year Libby Harris (Foxboro, Mass.) came off the bench and sank a jump shot to put the Lyons on the scoreboard, then assisted junior Isabel Cordes (Yorktown, Va.) on a jumper to make it 20-4. MIT's Kaya Weiser drained a three to give the visitors a 19-point lead after 10 minutes of play.
First-year Alex Twomey (Nutley, N.J.) hit a quick three for Mount Holyoke to start the second quarter. Mount Holyoke's point total hit double digits after a jumper by sophomore Marley Berano (Lady Lake, Fla.) and a 3-pointer by first-year Kendall Maurer (Orinda, Calif.), closing the difference to 30-12.
But MIT closed out the half with a 14-3 run over the last five minutes, including 3-pointers by Sarah Berman and Paula Pieper and back-to-back hoops by Alice Hall. A 3-pointer by Mount Holyoke junior Teal Howle (Florence, S.C.) was the only offensive bright spot in that span for the Lyons, who turned the ball over five times during the run.
Leading 44-15 at the half, MIT opened the second half in similar fashion to the first, scoring 12 unanswered points to open up a 56-15 lead. The Engineers shot 10-16 from the field in the third quarter in outscoring the hosts 26-7. Pieper, Brianna Lebrun, Weiser and Grace Harrington shot a combined 7-7 from the field for 19 points in the quarter.
Mount Holyoke played hard to the final buzzer. After a timeout at the 4:32 mark, the Lyons matched the Engineers 10-10, including a three-point play by Twomey and a jumper and an assist by first-year Taryn White (Alexandria, Va.).
Pieper led five Engineers in double figures with 13 points, adding five assists. Nwogu contributed 12 points, eight rebounds, four steals and three assists. Lebrun, Weiser and Olivia Joseph combined for 31 points off the bench.
Twomey scored nine points to lead Mount Holyoke, including 2-2 shooting from behind the arc. Berano added eight points.
Mount Holyoke will host Wheaton College Wednesday at 7pm in the Lyons' last home game. MIT plays at Babson Wednesday at 7:30pm.
