SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. -- The Mount Holyoke College basketball team pulled off a massive comeback Tuesday night against Lesley University, reversing a 22-point deficit to win 45-44 for first-year head coach Abby Wemhoff's first victory.
Senior Cal McGonagle (Yarmouth, Maine) had 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field, 15 rebounds and three assists for Mount Holyoke (1-9). Sophomore Sofia Francisco (Boston, Mass.) had 10 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots, and junior Alex Twomey (Nutley, N.J.) added 10 points, eight rebounds, and four steals.
Ahidali DeHuelbes led Lesley (5-6) with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists. Abbie Price added 13 points and seven rebounds off the bench, and Bella Terry contributed six points, 11 rebounds, and three steals.
Lesley led only 6-3 late in the first quarter before ending the period with a 10-0 spurt, with baskets by five different players, to take a 16-3 lead into the second quarter.
The Lyons continued to slip behind during the second quarter, as the Lynx extended their run to 19-0, culminating with a jump shot by Abbie Price that made it 25-3 in Lesley's favor with 4:29 left in the half.
A jumper by McGonagle made it 25-5 with 3:12 left, and Mount Holyoke cut the gap to 25-9 at the half with a pair of free throws by Francisco and another McGonagle jumper.
Mount Holyoke continued to chip away at Lesley's lead in the third quarter, starting off with a jumper by Twomey and a putback by McGonagle. The Lyons outscored the Lynx 19-9 in the third quarter, making it a six-point game (34-28) heading into the fourth quarter. McGonagle poured in 10 points in the period, while Lesley committed eight turnovers and shot 3-of-16 (.188) from the field.
A pair of free throws by Francisco, who ranks third in the NEWMAC in free throw percentage (.826), followed by a Twomey steal leading to a layup by McGonagle, made it 34-32 with 8:12 remaining in regulation. With 5:09 left in the game, Twomey swished a 3-pointer to tie the game for the first time since 3-3 at 37-37.
After Twomey rebounded a miss by Francisco and hit the follow to tie the game, DeHuelbes drained a three for a 44-41 Lynx lead with 1:57 to go. But McGonagle set up first-year Helena Robinson (Gales Ferry, Conn.) for a layup, and then was fouled after a miss by DeHuelbes. McGonagle hit both free throws, giving Mount Holyoke its first lead since it was 3-2, at 45-44 with 1:07 left in the game.
After a Lesley turnover, the Lynx committed three straight fouls to get Mount Holyoke into the bonus and shorten the clock. The Lyons missed both of their free throws with under 10 seconds remaining, and the Lynx called a final timeout. Francisco disrupted Lesley's play and committed the Lyons' final foul they had to give before putting Lesley into the bonus, and the Lynx inbounded the ball with 4.5 seconds on the clock. DeHuelbes inbounded the ball, got it back and released the would-be game-winning 3-pointer. The shot caromed off the front rim and McGonagle gathered the rebound as the final buzzer sounded.
Mount Holyoke will next play Jan. 2, at home against Gordon College with a 5pm tipoff.
