Basketball Tripped Up by WPI 54-32 on Wednesday

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Blue first year Caitlin Windross (Eastvale, Calif.) scored a team-high 10 points off the bench in a 54-32 loss to WPI on Wednesday night.

Wellesley falls to 3-13 overall and 1-5 in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play. WPI improves to an impressive 16-2 overall and 5-1 in conference play.

Senior Alex Scariati (Scotch Plains, N.J.) tallied a game-high 20 points for the Engineers including 4-of-7 from downtown. Classmate Lisa Cristiano (Valhalla, N.Y.) added six points on 3-of-6 shooting. Jordan Wynn (Groton, Mass.) had six points to go along with seven rebounds.

Blue sophomore Anna Greenthal (Orinda, Calif.) scored seven points and matched her season average with three steals. Junior Taylor Hirn (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) had a steady night with nine points and went 5-of-7 from the free throw line. First year Sairah O'Brien-Forde (Binghamton, N.Y.) had four points and six rebounds.

The contest began as a defensive battle with both units forcing tough shots for its opponent. The first basket came over three minutes into the game with Cristiano converting on a layup. Wellesley would take its first lead under a minute later after Camille Taylor (Boston, Mass.) scored on a great look by Greenthal. WPI would battle back and use an 8-0 run towards the end of the quarter to take a 16-9 lead, forcing the Blue to use a timeout. Windross would close out the quarter with a pair of free throws and Wellesley trailed by five. Both teams struggled to score in the second period, with only one field goal made in the first 6:22. First year Adrianna Niles (Tewksbury, Mass.) knocked down a jumper at the 3:41 mark to give WPI a 20-12 advantage. Windross kept the Blue in the game, scoring the final five points of the half including a shot from three point land and the score was 24-19 going into halftime.

The Engineers would take control out of the gate, scoring the eight points in the second half. Wellesley was able to connect from the charity stripe, but were outscored 17-3 in the third quarter. WPI would lead 41-22 heading into the fourth. The Blue would cut the lead back down to 16 after Greenthal made a tough jump shot with 5:15 to play. WPI would respond with a crushing three-pointer made by Melanie Presseau (Manchester, N.H.) to put the game out of reach

WPI handled the game inside the paint and outscored Wellesley 32-18. In total, Wellesley shot 11-of-45 (24.4%) from the floor and the Engineers shot 23-of-63 (36.5%) as a unit. 

The Blue seek to get back on track with a game at Babson next Wednesday, February 9 at 6:00 PM. WPI will head to Springfield on Saturday, February 5 with tip-off at 3:00 PM.