January 7, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Carole Grills
(413) 585-2703

Smith Defeats MIT 60-30 In NEWMAC Opener

Northampton, MA: The Pioneers opened New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) competition this evening with a 60-30 defeat of MIT. With the victory, Smith improved to 6-4 while the Engineers fell to 3-7.

Smith shot 48% from the floor and 88% from the free throw line in the first half to take a 37-21 lead at the break.  In the first twenty minutes, senior tri-captain Meredith Murelli (Litchfield, CT) scored 11 of her 14 points and pulled down 6 of her team high 7 rebounds while junior guard Berit Schelde (Holstebro, Denmark) added 10 of her 14 points. With the game tied at eight with fifteen minutes left, the Pioneers went on a 10-0 run over the next six minutes to take a 24-10 lead and outscored MIT 6-2 in the last three minutes of the half.

Senior guard Clark Yuan (San Jose, CA) opened the second half with a hoop for the Engineers and a three pointer by first year Jamie Simmons (Carlsbad, CA) brought MIT within thirteen (39-26).  Smith then outscored the Engineers 13-0 over the next eight minutes to take a 52-27 advantage which was enough to seal the victory.

Sophomore guard Jessica Welk (Arlington, WA) added 11 points for Smith while Lisa Marie Vuono (Lyndhurst, NJ) and Courtney Parker (Ocean City, MD) each pulled 7 rebounds in the victory.  Senior forward Cheryl Kwinn (Monroe, NY) had a team high 8 points and 11 rebounds in the loss for MIT.

The Pioneers resume NEWMAC competition on Saturday, January 10 when they host the US Coast Guard Academy at 2 p.m.