BABSON PARK, Mass. – The seventh-ranked Babson College women's basketball team used a dominating 49-point first half to run away from visiting Mount Holyoke College on Saturday, as the Beavers defeated the Lyons, 76-33, in a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) matchup at Staake Gymnasium. With the win, Babson improved to 12-0 overall and 6-0 in the conference, while Mount Holyoke fell to 2-9 overall and 1-5 in the NEWMAC.
Leading Babson in the victory were junior All-American Nicki Wurdeman (Rowley, Mass.), who scored 19 points and recorded three steals, junior captain Kathleen King (Framingham, Mass.), who posted a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, and sophomore Sarah Collins (Weymouth, Mass.), who also notched a double-double with 16 points and 11 boards while contributing three blocked shots. Also playing well for the Beavers were senior Damisi Adewumi (Bronx, N.Y.), who put up eight points, a career-high seven assists, and five rebounds, and senior captains Becky Bowman (Melrose, Mass.) and Amanda Grammel (Leominster, Mass.), who added nine and eight points, respectively.
Mount Holyoke was paced by juniors Tricia Chase (Feeding Hills, Mass.) and Christine Chancy (Bar Harbor Island, Fla.), who each finished with seven points, and sophomore Angelica Pacual (Lawrence, Mass.) and first-year Jennine Viscaino (New York, N.Y.), who each added five points while combining for seven rebounds.
Mount Holyoke stayed close early on, grabbing a 5-4 advantage after Vizcaino knocked down a long three-pointer at the 17-minute mark. After Babson went up 8-5 a minute later, Angelica Pascual hit another trifecta as the Lyons pulled even, 8-8, with 15:49 left in the first half. However, the Beavers would score 12 straight points as part of a 41-9 run to close the period, as the hosts went into the break armed with a commanding 49-17 lead. Wurdeman scored 15 points in the opening session for Babson, with King and Collins adding 10 points apiece while combining for 13 rebounds.
Babson emptied its bench midway through the second half, but the Beavers continued to expand their lead, going up by as many as 46 with six minutes left before finishing off the 76-33 victory. Junior Kelly McKenna (Shrewsbury, Mass.) turned in her best all-around effort of the season down the stretch, posting five rebounds, three assists, and two blocked shots in 12 minutes of action off the bench.
Currently ranked seventh in the nation the D3hoops.com weekly poll, Babson remained unbeaten on the season while extending its NEWMAC winning streak to 31 games.