WILLIAMSTOWN, MA -- Junior Claire Baecher scored 19 points Tuesday night to lead the Williams College women's basketball team to an 62-42 victory over visiting Springfield in the Chandler Gymnasium.
The win improved the Ephs to 3-0. They will face MCLA Sunday at 4 p.m. in North Adams. Springfield saw its record even at 2-2.
"This was a real mental test for us," Williams head coach Pat Manning said. "We had such a big weekend and a very short amount of prep time. I thought we showed great composure tonight."
An early 11-0 run had the Ephs up 27-12 with 12:01 remaining in the first half. Williams junior Jennie Harding and Grace Rehnquist scored nine points each in the first eight minutes of the contest. Harding came out firing, scoring nine of Williams' first 12 points.
Springfield held Eph junior Claire Baecher off the scoreboard early on, but the Ephs' leading scorer finished the half with eight after hitting two three-pointers down the stretch, the second coming with 3:25 to go that made it 35-22. The Ephs shot 53.8 percent (7 of 13) from beyond the arc in the first half.
"We shot the three much better tonight," Manning said. "This was a big night for Jennie (Harding) she scored 11 points, held her player (Kelly Murphy) scoreless and had three steals. She came out looking for her offense tonight and made good decisions -- she got it done on both ends of the floor."
Led 35-26 at half. Springfield scored the first four points of the second half, getting a three-pointer from junior guard Colleen Dignum and then another Dignum field goal to cut the Williams lead to 35-31.
It was still a four-point game with 15:10 remaining when the Ephs' got defensive, keeping the Pride of the scoreboard for the next 6:36 while extending their lead to 48-35. Beacher hit a trey to start the run, and Greenberg added four points. The Ephs began attacking the basket and going to the foul line, picking up five points in the run from the charity stripe.
"When they cut the lead, nobody panicked," Manning said. "I think a lot of that comes from Jill, she's running the show right now with a lot of poise and confidence. Defensively, we communicated much better in the second half. They move very well, have a lot of cuts and screens, and if you don't talk, you're going to be in trouble."
Kelly Slattery led Springfield with 12 points and was one of three Pride players in double figures. Dignum finished with 11 and Meghan Biondolillo added 10.
For Williams, Baecher added eight blocks and six rebounds to her line. Greenberg had 14 points, four assists and four steals, Harding had 11 points and three steals.
