NORTHAMPTON, Mass. - A strong first quarter propelled the Smith College basketball team to a 66-43 victory over Wellesley College in a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) matchup Saturday at Ainsworth Gymnasium. With the win, the Pioneers improved to 10-4 overall and 4-3 in the NEWMAC, while Wellesley fell to 6-7 on the year, with a 3-4 record against league foes.

SMITH HIGHLIGHTS

• Senior Lauren Bondi (Burnaby, BC, Can./Notre Dame Secondary) finished with a game-high 18 points to go along with six assists and four rebounds. She continues to lead the NEWMAC in scoring with 20.6 points per game.
• Senior guard Katy McClellan (Palmyra, Pa./Palmyra Area) went 5-of-6 from the field for 13 points, five assists, and three boards.
• Senior Kennedy Guest-Pritchett (Fairburn, Ga./The Lawrenceville School) posted 13 points and grabbed six rebounds while senior Sydney Koh (Seattle, Wash./Lakeside) added a season-high 12 points off the bench. 

WELLESLEY HIGHLIGHTS

• Caitlin Aguirre was the only Wellesley player to finish in double-digits, totaling 14 points in the setback.
• Emily Kopp hauled in a team-high seven boards, while Kendall You Mak chipped in eight points.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Smith jumped out to an early 9-0 margin following an offensive rebound and put-back from McClellan. From there, the Pioneers pushed its lead to 14 on a jumper from Guest-Pritchett with 3:43 left in the opening period. Koh converted a three-pointer with 15 seconds left, making it 23-8 at the break. 

McClellan gave Smith their largest lead of the game, 38-16, on a trey with 50 seconds left in the half, but Jada Wiltz nailed a jumper with 17 seconds remaining for a 38-18 score at halftime.

After a jumper by McClellan to open the third quarter, Wellesley began to chip away at the 22-point deficit as the Blue went on a 10-0 run to make it 40-28 with 6:12 to play. Smith got the offense rolling again and extended their lead to 58-36 heading into the fourth.

The Pioneers maintained a comfortable lead for the remainder of the game for the 66-43 final.

GAME NOTES

• Smith shot 23-for-50 (46%) from the field and tied a season-best 12-for-14 (85.7%) from the free throw line. 
• The Pioneer defense limited the Blue to 16-for-48 (33.3%) shooting on the afternoon.
• Wellesley owned a 32-28 edge on the boards while the Smith forced 19 turnovers.
• The Pioneers improve to 43-27 all-time against the Blue and have won the last eight meetings.
• Bondi is now tied with Lauren Kernochan '00 for seventh on the all-time scoring list passing Ann Miller '96, Berit Schelde '10, and Paulina Solis '14.
• Guest-Pritchett needs five rebounds to become the career leader in total rebounds at Smith.

UP NEXT
Smith steps out of conference and will host Middlebury College on Tuesday, January 15 at 6:00 p.m.

About Smith Athletics: Smith College is a NCAA Division III member of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference that sponsors 11 intercollegiate sports. For more information log on to smithpioneers.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.