January 31, 2007
For Immediate Release
Contact:  Carole Grills
(413) 585-2703

             Coast Guard Basketball Defeats Smith

Northampton, MA:  The Bears of the Coast Guard Academy built a comfortable 16 point lead in the first half to defeat the Pioneers of Smith 76-51 this evening in Ainsworth Gym. With the win, Coast Guard improved to 11-8 overall and 5-3 in the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) while Smith fell to 2-17 and 1-7 in conference play.

             The Bears built their early lead shooting 58% from the floor in the first half while Smith shot 36%. Sophomore Rosie Baldwin (South Strafford, VT) scored a team high 15 points for Smith including converting 9-for-10 from the charity stripe while teammates Helena Charron (Portland, ME) and Lisa Marie Vuono (Lyndhurst, NJ) added 11 and 10 respectively.

             Junior Natalie Moyer (Oklahoma City, OK) scored 16 of her game high 20 points in the first half to lead the Bears. The win gave Coach Alex Simonka, who is in his 14^th season and a 1979 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy, his 150^th victory. Junior Laura Hutchinson (Waynesboro, VA) tallied 18 shooting 6-for-10 from the three point arc while first year Melissa Martinelli (Vero Beach, FL) added 11 points with a game high nine rebounds.

             Both teams face NEWMAC opponents on Saturday, February 3 with Smith traveling to Wheaton for a 2 p.m. contest and Coast Guard hosting WPI at the same time.