Score: Emerson 67, Smith 66 (OT)
Records: Emerson Lions (11-13, 5-11 NEWMAC); Smith Pioneers (17-8, 9-7 NEWMAC)
Location: Boston, Mass. (Regan Gymnasium @ Suffolk University) 
Date: February 18, 2017

With just two seconds remaining on the clock in overtime, freshman Natalie Clydesdale sank the game-winning jumper to push the Emerson women's basketball team past Smith, 67-66, in the regular season finale for both teams.

The Pioneers earned the No. 5 seed in the upcoming New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament and will play at No, 4 seed MIT Wednesday at 7:00 p.m.

SMITH HIGHLIGHTS

• Sophomore forward Kennedy Guest-Pritchett (Fairburn, Ga./The Lawrenceville School) paced the Pioneers offense with a game-high 23 points to match a team-high 15 rebounds.
• Senior guard Mandy Castro (San Diego, Calif./Poway) led the defensive effort with five steals to go along with three assists and two rebounds.
• Sophomore guard Erin Hanley (San Francisco, Calif./St. Ignatius College Prepatory) tallied 13 points to match 11 boards, while Samantha Alakai (Pukalani, Hawaii/Punahou School) added 10 points and Paige Marquez (San Francisco, Calif./St. Ignatius College Prepatory) racked up a team-high five helpers.

EMERSON HIGHLIGHTS

• Leading the way for the Lions was sophomore Charlie Boyle, who finished with a team-best 18 points and went 6-for-12 from the floor and 6-for-7 from the charity stripe.
• Senior Elizabeth Horan followed added 15 points that included 5-of-11 shots made from beyond the arc and two assists. 
• Freshman Quinn Madden registered a season-best 13 points to match a team-high two blocks. 
• Junior Sierra Ducey recorded 14 boards, all of which were defensive. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

Emerson held its biggest lead, 7-4, at 4:36 of the first quarter as Boyle sank a successful jumper before the Pioneers squared the score 8-all on a pair of free throws by Guest-Pritchett. Smith held a four-point edge over Emerson going into the final 49 seconds of the quarter, but Madden sank a jumper and drew a foul to force the three-point play that put the Lions behind one at 12-11. 

A pair of Guest-Pritchett free throws ignited a 12-1 push that allowed the Pioneers to extend its lead to eight at 24-16 with 4:39 left to play in the half. Madden's layup at 4:04 sparked eight straight points, including back-to-back threes from Horan and sophomore Natalie Busch to even the score at 24-all. Smith answered with the next five of seven points to regain the 29-26 lead as Madden's jumper pushed the Lions within one at the half at 29-28. 

The Pioneers opened the third frame on a 12-5 streak to extend their lead to eight on a Guest-Pritchett jumper with 4:29 to go in the quarter. Through the final 3:30 of the third, Emerson held Smith to a single shot, which allowed the Lions to tack on six points to close the gap to four at 43-39 going into the final 10 minutes. 

Emerson's biggest deficit within the fourth quarter was five points after Hanley canned a trio of layups to put Smith up 49-44 with 5:52 left in regulation. The Lions squared the score twice before a single free throw by junior Eastin Ashby put the Lions in front, 57-55, going into the final 1:05. Smith cut Emerson's celebration short as Hanley drew a foul and sank the game-tying pair of free throws to send the game into overtime with the score at 57-57.

The Pioneers banged out six points to start off overtime and earned the 62-60 lead before Boyle's two good free throws evened the score, 62-all. Clydesdale canned a three to put Emerson up 65-64 with 2:13 left to play, but Lauren Bondi (Burnaby, BC, Can./Notre Dame Secondary) answered with the go-ahead trey at 66-65. With 32 seconds to play, Ducey recovered Bondi's triple attempt and handed the ball off to Clydesdale, who sank the game-winning three with two ticks on the clock and put the Lions up 67-66. Mandy Castro (San Diego, Calif./Poway) sent up a three as the buzzer sounded, but it was no good as Emerson walked away with the 67-66 overtime victory.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
Emerson outshot Smith (38.1%-34.7%) from the field, while the Pioneers beat the Lions on the glass (49-45) and inside the paint (36-16). 

(Recap courtesy to Emerson Athletics)