NORTHAMPTON - Senior guard Ally Yamada (Seal Beach, CA/Fairmont Prep Academy) scored nine of her game-high 17 points in the fourth quarter to help No. 14 Smith College defeat Maine Maritime, 61-46, in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Tournament on Friday night inside Ainsworth Gymnasium. 

With the win, Smith improves to 26-3 on the year and advances to the second round of the national tournament for the fourth consecutive season. The Pioneers are now 13-4 all-time in the NCAA Tournament. Maine Maritime, which was making its second straight tournament appearance, sees its year come to a close at 22-5. 

By the Numbers

• Yamada added five assists and five rebounds and connected on 4-of-9 from three-point range
• First-year guard Hannah Martin (North Andover, MA/North Andover) contributed 13 points and four rebounds, while graduate forward Sofia Rosa (Sudbury, MA/Lincoln-Sudbury) finished with 10 points and six rebounds
• Maine Maritime was led by Erianna Moore's 17 points and two rebounds
• Smith shot 42.1% from the floor, 33.3% from three-point range and 77.8% from the free throw line
• Maine Maritime went 35.2% (19-of-54) from the field, 16.7% (2-of-12) from long distance, and 75% (7-of-9) from the free throw line
• The Pioneers owned a 42-27 advantage in rebounds and 15-3 edge in fastbreak points

Game Highlights

• Smith opened up a 12-3 advantage thanks to a three-pointer by Martin followed by a layup by Rosa at the 4:23 mark. A 6-0 spurt by the Mariners brought them to within 12-9 with 2:37 to go. Selam Maher's (Hopkins, MN/St. Louis Park) 3-pointer with under 30 seconds put Smith up 17-9 after the first. 
• Yamada's bucket with 1:56 left in the half pushed Smith's lead to 12, but Maine Maritime closed the half on a 5-0 run to make it 31-24 at the break. 
• Jane Loo (Saratoga, CA/Saratoga) pushed Smith's lead to 44-34 at the end of the third with her layup in transition at 1:35
• Yamada knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers and added a three-point play followed by Martin's jumper, making it 57-44 with 2:51 to go. 

Up Next
Smith will now face Messiah University in the second round of the Northampton Regional on Saturday at 7:00pm inside Ainsworth Gymnasium. 

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 and Instagram.