Women's Basketball Opens Season With Win

BOSTON, Mass. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology women's basketball team held MIT to 30.5 percent shooting – including 21.9 percent in the second half – as the Leopards held on to defeat the Engineers, 50-46, in the season-opening game for both teams.

Both teams' offenses struggled early, combining for just 28 points over the first nine minutes of play before MIT turned a 14-all contest into a 20-14 lead with 7:05 left in the half.  A three pointer by freshman Margo Batie (Los Angeles, Calif.), a layup by freshman Rachel Hunt (Arlington Heights, Ill.), and one of two free throws from junior Marissa Good (Escondido, Calif.) provided the Engineers with the six straight points.

The Leopards scored the next five points, as senior Kirsten Vallone (Avon, N.Y.) drained a jumper, and, after a turnover, sophomore Ashley Conway (Danvers, Mass.) hit a three pointer.  MIT built the lead back up to as much as five and led by a pair (28-26) at the break.

Sophomore Morgan Furman (Falmouth, Maine) opened the second half with a layup to tie the game at 28-all before MIT scored the next four points to take a four-point lead.  A three pointer by Conway and a free throw by Furman knotted the game at 32-all and a freshman Kendra Kerr (Marshfield, Mass.) basket with 11:51 left gave the hosts their first lead of the half.

A pair of free throws from junior Meagan Pennock (Littleton, N.H.) extended a one-point lead to three (42-39) with 6:25 to play, but MIT countered with a three pointer from sophomore Anna Merrifield (Honolulu, Hawaii) to the the game at 42-all with 5:34 left.  Sophomore Jordan Biggar (Beverly, Mass.) drained a three ball with 5:17 left to give Wentworth a 45-42 lead, a lead the Leopards would not relinquish.

Trailing by three with two seconds left, Merrifield was fouled on the floor.  Shooting in the bonus situation, Merrifield drained the first, but her intentional miss of the second led to a shooting violation, giving Wentworth the ball.  Vallone drained two free throws with five tenths of a second remaining to seal the win.

Four different players – Furman, Conway, Pennock, and Kerr –had nine points to lead the Leopards, while Biggar chipped in with eight.  Vallone led all rebounders with 14.  MIT was paced by sophomore Lauren Sacha-Burton's (Seattle, Wash.) game-high 11 points and Merrifield's 10 points and 11 rebounds.

The Leopards (1-0) host Emerson on Wednesday night, while the Engineers are idle until Friday night when they battle Mass. College in the Golden Bear Hoop Classic in Springfield.