Kuhn Leads Women's Basketball Past Wheaton in Regular Season Finale

WPI 58, Wheaton 44

Worcester, MA --- The WPI women's basketball team used a sizzling start to both halves to defeat visiting Wheaton 58-44 in a key NEWMAC women's basketball contest on Saturday afternoon. With the win over their rivals, the Engineers (17-8 overall) finish the conference season 13-5 and earn the second seed in next week's NEWMAC Tournament.

WPI will host seventh-seeded Mount Holyoke on Wednesday in a NEWMAC Quarterfinal. Wheaton, who dips to 15-10 on the season and 12-6 in NEWMAC play, draws the fourth seed and will entertain fifth-seeded Smith, also on Wednesday. The time for both games will be announced later this weekend.

WPI began the game by draining its first five shots from the field, only to see the Lyons keep pace by netting their first four field goal attempts. The hosts used a nifty 10-4 spurt midway through the first stanza to take a 31-19 advantage into the locker room at the intermission. It was more of the same in the second half as the Crimson and Gray canned their first six shots to open up 20-point bulge at 42-22 and never saw the visitors get within single digits the rest of the way.

Elle Fontaine (Franklin, MA) led all scorers with 15 points for the Engineers while Melissa Kuhn (Stoughton, MA) had a solid all-around game tallying 13 points and a career-best seven steals to go along with three assists. Lauren Hannmann (East Greenbush, NY) tossed in 10 points and senior Brittany McNally (Mapleville, RI) equaled her career-high with eights points and added six boards.

Fontaine and freshman Theresa Logan (Southboro, MA) each grabbed seven boards as WPI enjoyed a 37-28 edge in rebounding and in turn a 22-12 advantage in points in the paint.

Jenny Champney (Bedford, MA) paced the Wheaton effort with 12 points. Freshman Jeana Triboli (Norwalk, MA) chipped in with seven points for the Lyons while Andrea Bailey (Needham, MA) and Ida Kruse (Vershire, NH) both finished with six. Bailey dished out a game-best five assists while Gabbie DePalo (Rumson, NJ) topped all players with eight rebounds.

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