Box Score NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – After falling behind by as many as 15 points, Smith College fought back to pull within three, but the Coast Guard Bears held on for a 55-48 victory in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action Tuesday night.

First-year Meghan Holland (Atherton, Calif./Sacred Heart Prepatory) scored nine points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field and added a team-high five assists. Senior Lauren Weston (Florence, Mass./Northampton) chipped in seven points and six rebounds, while first-year Amanda Barriscale (Mill Valley, Calif./Tamalpais) grabbed a team-high nine boards and dished out three assists.

The Bears, who defeated the Pioneers for the first time in 11 tries, were led by junior Meghan Fornaro (Charlton, Mass.), who recorded a game-high 21 points to go along with six rebounds and five assists. Fellow junior Torie Sutherland (Houston, Texas) recorded her first double-double of the season, finishing with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Coast Guard shot 41.2 percent from the field compared to Smith's 36.1 percent clip.

The Bears established a 12-2 lead early in the first half behind five of Fornaro's 21 points during the opening stretch. The Pioneers responded with a 16-6 run, highlighted by a jumper by first-year Samantha Alakai (Honolulu, Hawaii/Punahou School), to tie the contest, 18-18 with 7:29 to go in the opening stanza. Coast Guard closed the half with a 6-2 spurt to take a 24-20 lead into the half.

The Bears picked up where they left off at the end of the first half, starting the second stanza on an 8-2 run to push their advantage to 10 (32-22) with 16:13 to play. The Pioneers cut their lead in half by scoring on back-to-back possessions, capped off by a three by Holland. The Bears answered with a 14-4 run over the next 6:20 to take their largest lead of the contest, 46-31.

Smith clawed back into the game by applying constant pressure on the Coast Guard ball carriers, forcing five Bears turnovers to cut their deficit to three (48-45) on a layup by Barriscale with 2:05 to play.

The Pioneers then fouled on the other end, and the Bears made a reverse three point play, as Sutherland made the first of two free-throws before grabbing her own rebound on the second and putting it back in to push Coast Guard's lead back to six (54-58). A three-pointer by senior Alyssa Barrett (Berlin, Conn./Berlin) cut Smith's deficit down to three with 45 seconds to play, but that was as close as the Pioneers could get.

Smith is back in action on January 15 when they travel to South Hadley, Mass. to take on the Mount Holyoke Lyons at 7 p.m.