WPI Earns NEWMAC Tournament Bid With Defeat of Coast Guard

Worcester, MA --- Dani Davis (East Granby, CT) scored 16 points while dishing out five assists and adding four steals as WPI punched its ticket to the NEWMAC conference playoffs by defeating Coast Guard 79-44 on Saturday afternoon in NEWMAC women's basketball action at Harrington Auditorium. WPI climbs to a 10-15 record, with an 8-10 mark in the NEWMAC conference standings. Coast Guard closes out its season with a 5-19 overall mark and 1-17 in conference.

The Engineers, who won six of their final seven games to tie Springfield for fifth in the 10-team loop, will be the sixth seed in next week's tournament and will travel to third-seeded Clark in a quarterfinal contest on Wednesday at a time to be announced.  The semifinals and championship games are slated for next Saturday and Sunday at Babson. 

WPI's defense was stellar in the opening minutes of the game, as Coast Guard shot 0-for-2 with six turnovers on its first eight possessions. The Engineers jumped out to a 14-3 lead including seven straight points from Davis. The Bears never threatened as the Engineer led by as much as 25 after a layup from Kelly Morgan (Brookline, NH) with 3:16 remaining in the period put the hosts up 36-11. Coast Guard finished on a 7-2 run capped off by a layup byKaitlin Ward (Saline, MI). Going into halftime, WPI led 38-18. 

Early in the second half, WPI's Lauren Hannmann (East Greenbush, NY) showed off her passing skills when she pulled down a defensive rebound and found a streaking Cindy Chelius (Northfield, NJ) for a fast break layup. The Crimson and Gray took a 57-25 lead whenBaillie McNally (Mapleville, RI) hit a 3-pointer with 13:40 left in the game, capping an 11 point run. Later in the period, a pair of back-to-back layups from Sam Meyerhoff (Davenport, NY) helped WPI to a 12-2 run, taking a 40-point advantage at 69-29, its largest lead of the game. 

Playing in the final home game of her collegiate career, Hannmann poured in 11 points for the Engineers to go along with a game-high seven rebounds and five assists. Fellow senior McNally was perfect from the field and the line, finishing with 10 points and pulling down three boards. Theresa Logan (Southboro, MA) contributed nine points while Siena Mamayek(Melrose, MA) came off the bench to score seven points and haul in four rebounds.  

Larla Brown (Kingwood, TX) was the bright spot for the Bears, scoring 10 points and pulling down a team-high five rebounds. Ward and Brittney Zimmerman (Lewistown, PA) each finished with ten points with Zimmerman adding four assists and three steals. 

Story written by Mike Rupp - WPI Athletics