Box Score NORTHAMPTON, Mass. - First-year Lauren Bondi (Burnaby, BC, Can./Notre Dame Secondary) tied her career-high with 23 points, but it was not enough as Smith College fell to Wheaton College, 83-74 in overtime, in a hard-fought New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) basketball game Saturday afternoon in Ainsworth Gymnasium. 

Bondi, who shot 8-for-13 from the field, including 4-for-8 from the three-point line, led four Smith players in double-figures. Paige Marquez (San Francisco, Calif./St. Ignatius College Preparatory) neared a double-double with 12 points and nine rebounds, while Erin Hanley (San Francisco, Calif./St. Ignatius College Prep) and Tia Karapoulios (Cypress, Calif./Cypress) each produced valuable minutes off the bench to finish with 14 and 13 points, respectively. 

For the visitors, Kiley Shoemaker exploded for a season-high 30 points to go with 14 rebounds and five blocks to complete the double-double. Rebecca Arnone also finished with a season-high 26 points and five steals, while Emily Cuthbertson and Ruthie Zientek each added seven points. 

Bondi opened the game with a three-pointer, only to be answered by Arnone, who went back-to-back from long distance as Wheaton took a 6-3 lead. Marquez answered right back with a 3-pointer of her own to tie the game (6-6). A trey from Shoemaker gave the Lyons their largest lead of the first quarter, 16-11 with 2:14 on the clock. The Pioneers ended the period on a 6-2 run to come within 18-17 heading into the second. 

The second period was a back and forth affair as neither team was unable to pull away with Smith and Wheaton heading into halftime tied 32-32. 

Karapoulios sparked energy into her team and the Smith crowd as she connected on back-to-back three-pointers, giving the Pioneers a 54-50 lead and drew a charge on the defensive end with 6:26 on the clock in the fourth quarter. The Lyons would claw back to tie the game, but Hanley drove through the defense and connected on a reverse layup, drawing a foul as she completed the three-point play to put her team ahead 62-61 with 1:06 remaining. A free throw by Bondi gave the Pioneers a 63-61 lead but Arnone's layup tied the game at 63-63. Smith had the ball with 10 seconds remaining and a chance to win the game but Bondi's shot from behind the arc fell short. 

In overtime, Wheaton quickly went up 67-63 on jumpers by Shoemaker and Arnone but Smith tied the score at 67 as Bondi connected on both free-throws and Hanley nailed a basket. After Zientek's bucket put the Lyons up 71-69 at the 1:23 mark, the visitors did not look back as they were a perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line to close out the contest. 

The Lyons held advantages in rebounding (36-30) and at the free throw line, shooting 27 of 31 (87.1%) from the charity stripe, while the Pioneers made 8-12 (66.7%). Wheaton shot 45.6 percent (26-57) from the field and 26.7 percent (4-15) from long distance, while Smith was 29-of-67 (43.3%) from the field and connected on eight 3-pointers. 

Both teams return to action on Wednesday, February 3 at 7 p.m. Smith (7-12, 4-7) hosts WPI and Wheaton (14-6, 7-4) welcomes Babson for NEWMAC contests.