Arnone leads all scorers with 18 points 

POSTGAME COMMENTS WITH HEAD COACH MELISSA HODGDON

NORTON, Mass.  – The Wheaton College women's basketball team, ranked No. 22 in the USA TODAY Sports/Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division III Top-25 poll, bounced back against Springfield College with a 68-58 victory on Sunday afternoon in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action. 

Wheaton sophomore guard Rebecca Arnone (Litchfield, N.H./Campbell) helped the Lyons snap their three-game losing streak with a game-high 18 points, three steals, three rebounds and one assist. Junior forward Abbie Brickley (Sandy, Utah/Skyline) posted a double-double with 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds (six offensive), while sophomore forward Kiley Shoemaker (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius) also recorded a double-double with 16 points, ten rebounds, two blocks and three steals. Junior guard Laura Pierce (Hampstead, N.H./Pinkerton Academy) added ten points and four assists. 

Springfield junior forward Jaimie Bickelhaupt (Brookfield, Conn./Brookfield) tallied a team-high 14 points and five rebounds to pace the Pride. ClassmateRiley Fake (Brockport, N.Y./Brockport) added 13 points, three rebounds and three steals. Sophomore guard Heather Lewis (Saratoga Springs, N.Y./Saratoga Springs) chipped in with ten points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field and a team-high six rebounds. 

The Lyons outrebounded the visitors 45-33 including a 17-10 margin on the offensive glass. Wheaton also held a 28-17 margin in points off turnovers and a 19-6 advantage in second chance points. Springfield outscored the Lyons in the paint, 20-18, and posted a 33-10 differential in bench points. 

Wheaton secured a 33-14 lead at halftime as the Lyons shot 39.3-percent (11-for-28) from the field receiving nine points from Arnone (all off of three's), eight points from Brickley and six points apiece by Shoemaker and sophomore guard Alyssa Almario (West Orange, N.J./West Orange) to highlight the stanza. Defensively, the Lyons only allowed five field goals as Springfield shot 22.7-percent (5-for-22) from the field and 3-of-7 from the free throw line. 

The Blue and White extended their lead to as many as 25 points (43-18) with 16:55 remaining in the second half as Pierce buried her only three-pointer of the game on a feed by Brickley. Springfield slowly chipped away at its deficit eventually bringing the game under double digits at the 2:13 mark on a layup by freshman guard Dina Pitsas (Milford, N.H./Milford). 

Wheaton held off any potential rally from Springfield down the stretch going 7-for-11 at the free throw line to secure its second victory of the season against Pride. 

The Lyons (13-3, 8-3 NEWMAC) travel to Mount Holyoke College on Wednesday for a NEWMAC contest scheduled to tip-off at 7 p.m. Springfield (9-7, 5-6 NEWMAC) hosts MIT on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

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