WPI 51, Clark 44

Box Score

Worcester, MA --- The WPI women's basketball team extended its winning streak to six games and remained undefeated in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) with a 51-44 victory against Clark University at the Kneller Athletic Center on Saturday afternoon. 

WPI, which avenged an early season 46-45 loss to Clark, improved to 12-4 overall and 4-0 in league play.  Clark dropped to 6-9 (2-2 NEWMAC).

Junior Serena Dubois (Bangor, ME) led all scorers as she tied a career-high with 18 points and grabbed a team-best 11 rebounds.  It was her third straight double-double, sixth of the season and 11th of her career.  Sophomore Elle Fontaine (Franklin, MA) finished with 10 boards and six points, while senior Natasha Deschene (Presque Isle, ME) added seven points, five assists and four steals for WPI. 

Clark had three players score in double figures.  Freshman Ivori Aiken (Harlem, NY) topped the Cougars' offense with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Jillian Camilleri (Lancaster, MA) collected her fifth double-double of the year with 10 points and 13 boards, while senior Sarah Roderigue (Oakland, ME) claimed her second with 10 points and 10 boards. 

Aiken's jumper gave Clark its largest lead (12-3) of the first half at 13:12.  WPI then scored 10 of the next 12 points to trail by one (13-14) with 8:45 remaining.  The two teams traded buckets over the next two minutes, before the visitors took its first lead since the opening basket of the game.  Dubois' put-back, followed by a theft and lay-up by Deschene gave the Engineers a 21-18 advantage. 

However, Clark regrouped to reclaim a 26-23 advantage on a 7-2 spurt fueled by four points from Aiken and a three by Roderigue with 1:06 on the clock and held on for a 28-27 halftime edge. 

In the opening frame, Clark held a commanding 34-19 advantage on the boards, but WPI's defense kept them in the game. The Engineers forced 13 Cougar turnovers.  

The second half featured six lead changes, before WPI broke away for good midway through the frame.  With the score knotted at 34-all, the Engineers went on a 9-4 run to lead 43-38 with 7:19 to play.  Neither team scored for five minutes until a basket by Roderigue snapped the drought at 2:19, cutting WPI's margin to 43-40. 

WPI, which shot 88.9 percent from the free throw line in the half and 68.4 percent for the game (13-for-19), sank six freebies down the stretch to keep Clark at bay. 

WPI will travel to Cambridge, MA to face MIT in NEWMAC action on Wednesday at 7pm. Clark will host Eastern Connecticut State in a non-conference game on Thursday.

Story courtesy Clark University Sports Information