Women’s B-ball defeats Caltech
Beavers fall to Engineers 100-26
Despite early foul trouble that put Caltech in the bonus after 4:19 elapsed, the MIT Women’s Basketball team defeated the Beavers, 100-26, on Friday night. The Engineers reached the century mark for the second time in program history and also registered the second largest margin of victory as the Tech set these marks in a 105-30 decision over Rivier College in 1998.
Tamara R. Pena ’14 amassed a game-high 19 points to go along with six rebounds and three assists. Alexxis R. Isaac ’15 tallied 12 points, 10 boards, and three steals as Anna L. Merrifield ’13 recorded 10 points, eight rebounds, and three assists. Rachel Hunt ’14 notched eight points, seven rebounds, and two blocks while Michelle Battipaglia ’15 contributed eight points and five rebounds. Rebecca Odim ’13 chipped in nine points as Kirstyn Hein ’15 totaled eight points and four boards. Mari R. Kordell ’15 rounded out the squad with five assists and four rebounds.
Pena put MIT on the board with a three pointer after 15 seconds elapsed, but two free throws and back-to-back layups gave Caltech a 6-3 edge two minutes later. On the Engineers’ next possession, a put-back by Isaac ignited a string of 31 unanswered points which resulted in a 34-6 advantage with 6:51 remaining in the half.
The Engineers continued to find success in the second stanza as a layup by Elizabeth A. Burton ’12 gave MIT its largest margin of the game (100-23) with 2:01 left to play. The Engineers finished the night with advantages in rebounding (62-18), points off turnovers (46-11), second chance points (31-2), points in the paint (60-14), and bench points (50-5).
MIT, in its first visit to Caltech since the series began in the 2000-01 season, improved to 4-0 all-time against the Beavers and 3-1 for the year. The Engineers will conclude their West Coast road trip on Saturday, Nov. 26 at Occidental College.