Box Score NORTHAMPTON, Mass.--
Rosa Drummond (Rye, N.H./Portsmouth) scored 24 points, moving into third place on the all-time list of scorers at Smith, but it was not enough as the Pioneers fell to Worcester Polytechnic Institute 69-61 in overtime in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action on Saturday afternoon.
Drummond moved past Lauren Kernochan '00 and Jennifer Ramsey '92 and now has 1,186 career points. Â She trails only Tammy Drummond '84 (no relation, 1,399 points) and Phoebe Jacob (1,441 points) on the list of point scorers at Smith. Â
Paulina Solis (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill) added 14 points, and
Mandy Castro (San Diego, Calif./Poway) chipped in eight.
Dani Davis led five WPI players in double-figures with 16 points and eight rebounds, while Rachel Pineda, Jessica Larsen, Siena Mamayek, and Amaia Gritsko each had 11. Â Those five combined for 60 of WPI's 69 points. Â Larsen had a double-double, collecting 10 boards to go with her 11 points.
Smith is now 2-7, and 2-4 in the NEWMAC, while WPI is 4-6, and 2-3 against NEWMAC foes.
Drummond scored Smith's first nine points of the game as the Pioneers jumped out to an early lead, but WPI wents on a 10-2 run to lead 12-9 at the 12:36 mark of the first half. Â The Engineers expanded their lead to eight on Dani Davis' free throw with 3:03 to play in the first half, but Smith clawed back within five on Drummond three pointer with 28 seconds left in the first half. Â WPI led 29-24 at halftime.
The Pioneers came out the halftime break on fire, scoring the first nine points of the stanza for a 33-29 lead. Â
Paulina Solis (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill) hit a three on Smith's first possesion, and Drumond hit a pair of jumpers as Smith went back in front. Â
Morgan Kelly responded for the visitors with a pair of three point baskets as WPI went back up 35-33, but back came Smith, getting buckets from Drummond and Solis to take a 39-38 advantage. Â Smith pushed the lead up to 46-40, as
Lauren Weston (Florence, Mass./Northampton) fed
Mandy Castro (San Diego, Calif./Poway) for a three point shot, and Solis connected with
Sydney Parkmond (Waterbury, Conn./Chase Collegiate) for a layup with 10:10 to play. Â
Smith led 54-49 with 3:19 left in the game, but WPI closed regulation on a 6-1 run to force overtime. Â After Jessica Larsen's free throw got the Engineers within four at 54-50, Pineda's layup closed the gap to 54-52 with 50 seconds to play. Â Solis went 1-for-2 from the line, and on WPI's next possession, Amaia Gritsko converted a conventional three point play to knot the score at 55.
Both teams had one final chance to win in regulation. Â Smith brought the ball up, but turned it over, and Davis' three at the buzzer was long.
In overtime, WPI quickly went up 59-55 on two free throws each by Davis and Pineda, but Smith tied the score at 59 as Weston put back a Drummond miss, and Drummond knocked down a 12 footer that rolled around the rim and in. Â Davis hit a three for the Engineers next time down the court, and WPI never looked back, sinking five of eight free throws in the final 1:08 to seal the win.
WPI held advantages in rebounding (40-33) and at the free throw line, shooting 20 of 26 free throws while Smith made six of eight. Â It was the first time WPI had beaten Smith since 2010, and the first OT loss for the Pioneers since a 72-70 setback at Westfield State University on November 17, 2010.
Smith heads to MIT for a NEWMAC game that starts at 7 p.m. on January 7. Â WPI will also be on the road, traveling to Wheaton College on the same evening.