SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. -- The Mount Holyoke College basketball team outscored Lesley University 6-0 in the fourth quarter to grind out a 45-43 victory on Tuesday night in Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium.
The Lyons (1-6) trailed the Lynx (2-6) 30-25 at the half and 43-39 after three quarters. Neither team led by more than five points throughout the game, which included 11 ties and eight lead changes.
Mount Holyoke senior Alex Twomey (Nutley, N.J.) hit a layup to open the fourth-quarter scoring, and then assisted senior Taryn White's (Alexandria, Va.) go-ahead layup with 5:08 left in the game after a steal by junior Melina Pena (Miami, Fla.).
A free throw by Twomey with 19.1 seconds remaining represented the only point by either side in the final five minutes of the game.
Lesley called timeout, and on the Lynx' final possession, a layup attempt by Shayla King was blocked by Mount Holyoke senior Sofia Francisco (Boston, Mass.). Alawnah Dunda secured the rebound and went up for the would-be game-tying basket, but Francisco blocked that shot too as time expired.
Lesley shot 0-16 in the fourth quarter and committed six turnovers. Mount Holyoke shot 2-15 with two turnovers in the period as the Lyons scraped past the Lynx.
For the game, Mount Holyoke shot 17-72 (.236) with 23 turnovers, while Lesley shot 12-54 (.222) with 30 turnovers. Mount Holyoke had a 57-43 edge on the boards, including 27 offensive rebounds.
White led Mount Holyoke in scoring with 12 points to go with 10 rebounds, three assists, two steals and a blocked shot. White's double-double was the third of her career.
Twomey recorded her fifth career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Francisco grabbed 13 rebounds, blocked four shots and scored six points, including her first career 3-pointer.
Savannah Gravitt scored 11 points for Lesley before exiting the game early in the fourth quarter with an injury. Abbie Price had 11 points and nine rebounds, and Dunda grabbed 13 rebounds for the Lynx. King scored seven points off the bench, including 5-6 shooting from the foul line.
Mount Holyoke's third win against Lesley in the past three seasons raises the Lyons' all-time record against the Lynx to 3-2.
Mount Holyoke will next face New England College on Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 7pm, while Lesley next plays at Vermont State Lyndon Dec. 2 at 7:30pm.
