BOX
SCORE
BABSON PARK, Mass. -- Clark University senior captain Peter
Normandin (Westminster, Mass.) scored seven points during a pivotal
12-2 second half run and then added two key free throws with 1.4
seconds left to help the visiting Cougars defeat host Babson
College, 69-66, in a hard-fought New England Women's and Men's
Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) battle at Staake Gymnasium on
Wednesday night. It was the first conference game of the season for
both team, as Clark improved to 7-5 overall and Babson dropped to
8-4.
Junior captain Mark Alexander (Providence, R.I.) and first-year
Brian Vayda (Sturbridge, Mass.) both joined Normandin with strong
performances for the Cougars. Alexander netted a team-high 19
points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field and a 9-of-10 clip from
the line, while Vayda shot 7-for-13 from the floor and 4-for-6 from
the stripe for 18 points to go with a game-high nine rebounds and
five steals. Normandin finished with 12 points and six boards
while hitting all six of his free throw attempts.
First-year Lambros Papalambros (Quincy, Mass.)
paced Babson with 15 points, five rebounds, and four assists, while
senior captain Zach Etten (Hollis, N.H.) added 14
points. They were joined in double figures by first-year
Marcus Edwards (East Hampton, N.Y.), who posted 11
points and six boards, and first-year Kris Noonan (Boothbay
Harbor, Maine), who came off the bench to record 10 points
and six rebounds on perfect 5-of-5 shooting.
After taking a 32-31 edge into the break, Babson pushed
its lead to as many as nine after a three-pointer by sophomore Eric
White (Hyattsville, Md.) made it 48-39 with 13:26 left in the
second. The Beavers still led by six at 50-44 with 11:53 to go, but
Clark surged ahead with a 12-2 run over the next seven minutes,
including seven points by Normandin, to take a 56-52 lead with
under five minutes to play.
Babson eventually battled back to tie the score at 58-58 with
2:46 left, but the Cougars quickly put the game away behind
Alexander, who scored eight of his team's final 13 points. The
junior forward put the Cougars in front for good when he knocked
down a clutch three from deep in the left corner with 1:40 on the
clock, and, after a jumper by Vayda made it a five-point cushion,
Alexander knocked down a pair of freebies to give Clark a 65-58
advantage with 37.1 seconds remaining.
Babson would whittle the lead down to just one after a trifecta
by Etten made it 67-66 with 2.2 seconds left, but Alexander drew a
foul and sank two more foul shots with 1.4 on the clock to extend
Clark's lead to three. The Beavers had one final chance to tie the
game, but a desperation heave from the baseline was knocked away by
a Clark defender as the Cougars held on for the 69-66 victory.
