Box Score WILLIAMSTOWN, MA – The Ephs (0-0 NESCAC, 3-0) defeated Bridgewater State College (0-1) in an out-of-conference matchup today by a score of 78-64. Despite being a tight game, Williams was able to pull away in the second half to maintain a wide berth in the face of Bridgewater's athletic and aggressive defense.
Bridgewater won the tip-off but was unable to capitalize on their first possession on offense. Play would remain scoreless, in fact, until the 18:15 mark when Bridgewater utilized a fast break to be the first on the scoreboard. MaryKate O'Brien quickly tied things up with a lefty layup, and teammate Kelie MacDonald forced a turnover to help the Ephs regain possession. Colleen Hanscom drove to the hoop to give the Bears back the lead, but it would be short-lived as Ellen Cook drained a three-pointer to put the Ephs up by one point. MacDonald followed that up with a three-pointer of her own to make it 8-4 in Williams' favor.
Bridgewater battled back to bring the game within one basket, but freshman Lauren McCall helped Williams stretch their lead with a short jump shot at the 14:08 mark. The teams would battle back and forth, trading layups through the next few possessions. Katie Littman added a layup of her own before Bridgewater's Jenna Williamson could drain a three-pointer to bring the score to 12-9. Bridgewater would continue to shoot well, as Williamson made another jump shot. Williams had their own success outside the arc, as McCall dropped a three-pointer with just under 13 minutes to go in the half. The Bears pushed hard to the hoop, and with a spin move from Chanelle Melton, they were able to bring the score within one point.
Bridgewater crashed the boards, collecting offensive rebounds to maintain possession with just under ten minutes to play in the half. However, the score remained at 16-15 until Williams began a 4-0 run. The Ephs found themselves in foul trouble at the 8:01 mark and put Hanscom on the line. She'd sink both of her foul shots to bring the score to 20-17 in Williams' favor. Hanscom would follow that up with a three-pointer to tie things up at 20-20. McCall found her spot again outside the arc to regain the lead, but Bridgewater would get another chance on the foul line shortly thereafter. Melton made her second foul shot, bringing the score to 25-21.
Aggressive defense from the Bears kept the Ephs from advancing up court easily after Melton's foul shots but the home team responded to the pressure with a three-pointer from freshman Katie Leinbach. Williams' fouls would come back to haunt them again, as Bridgewater's Elisha Homich got the chance to shoot one-and-one. She made both to bring the Bears within five points of their competition. Bridgewater kept up the pressure defensively, troubling point-guard O'Brien. This aggressive defense would cause Eph turnovers, but would also put the Bears in foul trouble.
Melissa Daigle continued Bridgewater's strong shooting with a three-pointer to bring the score within two points. McCall responded with another three pointer, which Litman followed up with a hook shot within the paint to regain a wider berth. Bridgewater's Lauren Geary capitalized on the foul line with just under 2 miuntes to go in the half, bringing the score to 36-28, but Leinbach utilized a fast break opportunity to regain the 8-point lead. With less than thirty seconds to spare, Bridgewater's Rachel Kusz sunk a three pointer to have the final say of the half. The first period would end at 36-31 in the Ephs' favor.
The second half began with Bridgewater in control, but Williams would turn the momentum in their favor to go on a 4-0 run before their competition could respond. Then it was Bridgewater's turn to go on a run of their own, tying things up at 40-40 with a three-pointer and layup from Elisha Homich and a layup from teammate Megan Boutilette. Litman would break up the Bear's streak with a layup, which teammate O'Brien would follow up with a made three-pointer. Cook continued the Ephs' run with a layup to bring the score to 47-42 in their favor.
The two teams would trade layups until Williams would widen their berth to nine points with less than fifteen minutes to play. A three pointer by Devon Caveney with only three seconds left on the shot clock helped the Ephs maintain this lead, but the Bears utilized their speed to keep up the pressure defensively and shut down Williams' running game. This defense paid off when a steal by Homich led to a layup for the Bears. Bridgewater kept Williams at 56 points for over 2 minutes until the 8:12 mark when Cook sunk two free throws to regain a 7-point lead. Melissa Daigle gave the Bears another layup with a nice spin move in the paint.
Bridgewater could not seem to break into their 7-point deficit, however, as Williams widened their lead to 10 with layups from Litman, O'Brien, and Cook. The Bears called a timeout with 5:42 left to play, but it would not be enough to jumpstart a comeback. Finding themselves in foul trouble, the Bears put Litman back on the line to sink two foul shots. Both teams continued to push to the hoop, but Williams' lead would keep shifting back to 12 points until just under the 2 minute mark when Cook was able to widen the lead with a layup and then a pair of foul shots.
Bridgewater never gave up, as Homich made another steal to drain a three-pointer undefended. The Bears began intentionally fouling to try and regain possession, but it would not be enough to make up their deficit. The clock ran out with the score at 78-64 in the Ephs' favor, giving them their third win of the season.
"Bridgewater is an experienced, athletic, quick team so we knew this would be a big challenge for us," said Manning. "Katie Litman was a great presence off the bench, she played so tough and came up big for us today. This is the third game we've played in four days, and the third gym we've played in in that time, and I'm so impressed with how we've adjusted." Manning went on to speak to the poise of her players, and their ability to make great decisions under Bridgewater's pressure, saying, "This team loves to compete, they just come out and play. They're unselfish and I'm very proud of their effort."
Williams next takes on Castleton at 1 P.M. on Saturday in their first away match.
