NORTHAMPTON - Senior Jessie Ruffner (Rocklin, Calif./Rocklin) scored 20 points with eight rebounds and five assists and the No. 2 seed Smith College basketball team (25-3) secured the program's fourth consecutive conference title with a 90-59 victory over fifth-seeded Babson (15-13) in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championship game on Sunday afternoon at Ainsworth Gymnasium. 

This marked the third-straight time that the Pioneers and Beavers have met in the conference title game. 

Ruffner earned Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors for the third in her career after she previously accomplished the feat as a first-year in 2020 and a junior in 2023.

"We always talk about leaving a legacy here at Smith. For me, this being my fourth (championship), there's a lot of pride…because we want to be dominant in the NEWMAC, we want to be dominant on the national stage," Ruffner said.

With the victory, Smith has secured the NEWMACs automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and the field of 64 will be announced in a live selection shot on NCAA.com on Monday afternoon at 2:30pm. 

By the Numbers

• Hannah Martin (North Andover, MA/North Andover) had a career-high 21 points and knocked down 7-of-9 from behind the arc
• Sofia Rosa (Sudbury, MA/Lincoln-Sudbury) finished with 11 points, four rebounds, and three assists
• Selam Maher (Hopkins, MN/St. Louis Park) contributed 10 points off the bench
• Smith shot 63.5% from the field, 66.7% from three-point range, and 92.3% (12-of-13) from the free throw line

Game Highlights

• The two teams exchanged layups to start the game and Babson pulled ahead 6-2 before Jane Loo (Saratoga, CA/Saratoga) connected on a 3-pointer halfway through the period. Smith went up 13-8 on Maher's jumper, but Babson jumper as time expired brought them to within 13-12 going into the second. 
•  Martin drained three of her seven triples in the second frame and the Pioneers ended the first half on an 8-2 run to give them a 37-29 lead.
• The home team pulled away decisively in the third quarter, holding Babson  to just 11 points while they banked 29 points and shot 75% from the field for a comfortable 66-40 lead going into the final quarter. 
• Smith continued its hot shooting in the fourth and cruised down the stretch for the 90-59 final

"It's really cool playing with these experienced players who have been to the Final Four – I knew what I wanted to do when I came here, I knew that Coach had a position for me, and I just wanted to do my position as best as I could," Hanah Martin said. "When I had the shot, I could take it but (I want to make) sure that my teammates also get their shots." 

"It's the balance of our attack, we're staying pretty steady to that – our ability to either score from the interior or the ability to penetrate off the bounce and our shooters. When you have all three of those phases working for you, we're hard to guard," Smith head coach Lynn Hersey said. "Tonight was about us taking this championship and being aggressive to go get it. I felt like the team came through and certainly did that."

Up Next
Stay tuned to SmithPioneers.com and our social media accounts on Monday afternoon for more information on Smith's NCAA Tournament first round opponent. 

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.