Women's Basketball Drops 71-46 Decision to #4 Amherst

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – The fourth-ranked Amherst College women's basketball team posted a 71-46 victory over host Bridgewater State University on Saturday afternoon at the Tinsley Center.

The visiting Jeffs remain unbeaten on the season as they improve to 6-0, while the Bears slip to 5-2.

Sophomore guard Ali Doswell (Richmond, Va.) paced Amherst with a game-high 17 points to go along with three rebounds, four assists and a steal.  Doswell connected on 5 of 14 three-pointers.

As a team, the Jeffs converted 14 of 35 (40%) three-point attempts and assisted on 22 of their 27 field goals.

Sophomore guard Hannah Peterson (Cambridge, Mass.) added 15 points on 4 of 8 shooting from behind the arc. Peterson also contributed four assists, two blocked shots and a steal.  Junior forward Marley Giddins (Irvington, N.Y.) chipped in with 13 points on 6 of 7 shooting to go along with six rebounds, two blocks and four steals.

Junior guard Vanesa Conceicao (New Bedford, Mass.) was the only Bear in double-figure scoring as she finished with 13 points, three rebounds, three assists and a steal.  Senior forward Megan Boutilette (Charlton, Mass.) added nine points, five rebounds, two assists and three steals in 21 minutes off the bench, while sophomore forward Chanelle Melton (Brockton, Mass.) tallied eight points on 3 of 4 shooting.

Amherst jumped out to a quick 11-3 lead as Doswell drained three trifectas within the first two plus minutes of the contest.  The Jeffs increased the advantage to 24-9 on the strength of three consecutive three-pointers by Peterson.  A quick 6-0 spurt by Bridgewater State cut the deficit to nine (24-15), but sophomore guard Jaimie Renner (Newton, Mass.) answered with a three-pointer to make it a double-digit advantage.  The lead would not shrink below ten points the rest of the way.

The Jeffs got up by as many as 16 points (39-23) in the first half and 27 (71-44) in the final stanza.

Bridgewater State shot 38% (18-47) from the floor and finished just 1-for-5 from behind the arc.  Amherst held a 37-24 rebounding advantage including a 16-8 edge off the offensive glass.

The Bears host third-ranked Tufts University on Tuesday night at seven, while the Jeffs entertain Rhode Island College on Wednesday evening at six.