Wellesley Basketball Upsets Smith, 62-61

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Four last-second points from Wellesley's Leslie Leong held off a late surge from Smith College, as the Blue downed the Pioneers 62-61 on Saturday at Keohane Sports Center. Leong hit a 15-foot jumper with 13 seconds remaining, then followed with a steal and two points from the free throw line with 5 seconds left to ice the game for the Blue.

The win, Wellesley's first over Smith since 2006, lifts the Blue to 5-6 overall, 4-2 in the NEWMAC. Smith drops to 9-3, 4-2 in the conference.

Smith grabbed an early lead in the opening minutes of the game, but a layup from Wellesley's Morgyne Weaver gave the Blue a 15-10 lead midway through the period. Smith battled back, taking a 23-22 lead on a layup from Paulina Solis with 2:49 remaining in the period, as the visitors headed to the locker room with 30-28 lead.

Wellesley opened the second half with a 13-3 run, including four points each from Weaver and Malia Maier. Smith's Devon Quattrocchi stopped the run with consecutive jumpers, cutting the lead to 42-37 at the 11:47 mark. The squads then traded baskets for three minutes before clutch shooting from Quattrocchi and Maddie Page, along with a layup from Lizzy BelBruno, gave the Pioneers a 50-49 lead with 6:34 left.

Wellesley surged again, with two driving buckets from Maier, but a layup from Smith's Ellie Giles and two freethrows from Page tied the score at 58-58 with 25 seconds remaining. Leong followed with four straight to seal the game for the Blue.

For Wellesley, Leong tied a career-high with 17 points, while also adding a game-high eight rebounds with three assists. Maier had a solid all-around game with 14 points, and four each of steals, rebounds and assists. Rounding out the box score, Weaver picked up 12 points and six boards, while Meghan Sargent added eight points.

Smith was led by 13 points each from Devon Quattrocchi and Maddie Page, while Quattrocchi also tallied five assists and four steals. Lizzy BelBruno added a seven point effort while Ellie Giles contributed three steals and four blocks for the Pioneers.

Both teams continue NEWMAC play on Wednesday. The Blue battle Wheaton at home at 7:00pm, while Smith hosts Clark at home, also at 7:00pm.