NEED TO KNOW:
Score: Smith 53, Keene State 39
Records: Pioneers 6-0, Owls 0-6

KEENE, N.H. - First-year Ally Yamada (Seal Beach, Calif./Fairmont Prep Academy) poured in a career-high 18 points to propel the Smith College basketball team to a 53-39 win at Keene State College Tuesday evening at Spaulding Gymnasium. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Owls cracked the scoreboard quickly, as Jordyn Burk fed Kenzie Bennett for a three 30 seconds in, but Smith College saw Yamada and Gleissner can triples as part of an 11-0 surge that give the visitors an eight-point lead not even three minutes in.  Keene State did not score again until the 4:26 mark of the first quarter when Jenny Freedman made a free throw to make it 11-4.  The Pioneers led throughout, including 19-8 after one quarter.  Neither team scored over the opening three minutes of the second period, but shortly thereafter, a pair of long-range shots from Clairmont extended Smith's lead to 25-11 with 5:36 left until halftime.  Katie Martineau sparked an 8-0 Owl run, as her two triples made it a single-digit game again before Thach split the defense to make it 25-19 at the 3:15 mark.  KSC had a chance to draw even closer, but could not convert a layup and wound up trailing 29-19 at the break after Yamada scored in the final seconds.

Smith gained separation with a 7-0 run in the opening 2:20 of the third quarter, which included another triple each from Yamada and Clairmont, who combined to make seven (of the Pioneers' nine) on the evening.  Trailing 36-19, the home team attacked the basket and got three layups on consecutive possessions to make it an 11-point game with just over five minutes to go in the peirod, but the Pioneers still maintained a 42-29 edge into the fourth.  The Owls pushed in the final quarter, as a layup from Samantha Adamson and a three-point play by Thach made it 42-34 with just under eight minutes to go.  Keene State once again had chances to get even closer, but a turnover and a pair of missed jumpers followed and Smith pushed their lead back to 11 with 5:30 to go.  Thach grabbed a board and then knocked down a three 21 seconds later to again make it an eight-point game (45-37) at the five minute mark, but a pair of Yamada threes over the next two minutes all but sealed the game for the Pioneers.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Yamada's career-high came on 7-of-15 shooting from the field, including a 4-of-9 mark from the fre throw line
• Dashelle Gleissner (Los Angeles, Calif./Serra) came just shy of a triple-double as the sophomore guard finished with nine points, nine assists and nine rebounds
• First-year Amelia Clairmont (Laconia, N.H./New Hampton School) totaled 14 points and five boards

GAME NOTES

• Smith moves to 2-12 all-time against the Owls
• At 6-0, the Pioneers are off to their best start since the 2011-12 season
• Smith dominated the glass, holding a 52-25 edge in rebounds
• The Pioneers shot 19-of-55 (35.5%) from the field and 8-of-25 (32.0%) from long distance, while the Owls were 16-of-55 (29.1%) from the field and 4-of-19 (21.1%) from three-point range

UP NEXT
Smith will travel to RPI on Monday, December 2 for a 6:00 p.m. contest.

(Portions of this recap courtesy to KSC Athletics)

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.