Smith Named MVP As Beavers Capture Shooting Touch Tournament Title, Improve to 6-0

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.—Senior Megan Bauman (East Lyme, Conn.) scored seven of her team-high 17 points in the fourth quarter and No. 17/17 Babson College closed the game with a 21-8 run to rally for a 59-56 win over Williams College in the championship game of the Shooting Touch Tournament on Saturday afternoon inside Chandler Gym.

With the win, zBabson improves to 6-0 and helped head coach Judy Blinstrub record the 699th victory of her career. Williams, which suffered its first home loss of the year, slips to 5-3 overall.

Bauman, who was named to the all-tournament team, added six rebounds, three assists and two steals, while senior Samantha Smith (Greenfield, Mass.) finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and three steals on the way to earning tournament most valuable player honors. Junior Kelly Walsh (Goffstown, N.H.) added 14 points for the Beavers.

Sophomore Arianna Gerig (Westport, Conn.) scored a career-high 22 points and senior Maddy Mandyck (West Hartford, Conn.) contributed 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for the Ephs.

Down four at the half, the Green and White took a 35-34 lead on a three-point by sophomore Katelyn Mollica (Foxborough, Mass.) just over three minutes into the third quarter. Williams responded with a 14-3 run that included 12 consecutive points from Gerig to build a 48-38 advantage, its largest of the afternoon, with 1:06 to go in the stanza.

Sophomore Camilla Silk (Medfield, Mass.) canned a pair of free throws and Walsh beat the buzzer with a jumper to get the Beavers back within six heading to the fourth. Gerig answered a three-point play by Bauman with consecutive free throws to keep the Ephs in front 52-45 before Babson embarked on an 11-2 run to go back in front 56-54 on a free throw by junior Rachel McMenemy (Northborough, Mass.) with 4:40 remaining in the contest.

Gerig broke a Williams drought of over three minutes with a layup at the 3:25 mark but Bauman put the Beavers ahead for good by knocking down two free throws on the ensuing possession. Smith made 1-of-2 free throws with 1:18 left to make it a three-point game and the Ephs missed four shots over the final 17 seconds, including a pair of three-pointers that could have tied the game.

The Green and White shot 37 percent and outscored Williams 16-10 at the free throw line in addition to finishing with a 43-33 edge on the glass. The Ephs shot 35.5 percent and scored 21 points off the Beavers' 22 turnovers.

Babson returns to action on Tuesday when it hosts Framingham State at 6 p.m., while Williams hosts nationally-ranked Smith on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

GAME NOTES
• The Beavers have split their last four games against Williams since 2019 and Saturday's win was their first over the Ephs in Williamstown in nine tries.
• Babson has held each of its last five opponents below 36 percent shooting.
• The Beavers are 5-0 this season and 39-2 going back to 2019-20 when allowing fewer than 60 points.
• Going back to the start of last season, Babson is 5-1 in games decided by five points or less.