WORCESTER -- Williams scored the final 16 points of the first half to transform an 11-point deficit into a lead it would not relinquish the rest of the way en route to posting a 70-53 victory over host WPI in a non-conference women's basketball contest played Tuesday evening inside Harrington Auditorium.
The Ephs are now 7-6 on the season while WPI slips to 7-5 overall.
The Engineers shot a sizzling 61.1% from the floor in the first quarter, connecting on 8-of-13 field goal attempts with six different players denting the scoring column en route to a 19-16 edge after 10 minutes. The lead ballooned to double digits and sat at 11 at 33-22 after Emmy Allyn (Rutland, MA) drained a pair of free throws with 4:45 to go before the half.
Williams connected on seven straight shots of its own during the 16-0 spurt. Hanorah Murray (Auburn, MA) and Arianna Gerig (Westport, CT) tallied five and four points respectively during the run with Gerig accounting for two of the Ephs' five assists during the hot streak that gave the visitors a 38-33 advantage at the half.
The Ephs put the game out of reach in the waning moments of the third quarter rattling off an 11-1 run, including five points from Logan Coster (New York, NY) and four by Cortland McBarron (Fair Haven, NJ). The Williams defense also shined in the final three quarters, limiting WPI to just 33.3% shooting from the floor over the last 30 minutes.
McBarron took home game-best scoring honors with 21 points and was joined in double figures in scoring by Gerig, who finished with 10. Both players hauled in eight boards with McBarron doling out four assists and Gerig collecting three steals and two blocks. Tatum Leuenberger (Sunnyvale, CA) led all Williams reserves on the night with eight points off the bench.
Allyn and Adrianna Niles (Tewksbury, MA) topped the WPI offensive attack with 19 points apiece. Both finished 7-of-12 from the floor with Niles draining three 3-pointers and Allyn canning a pair of trifectas. Megan Stone (Hanson, MA) also excelled with a career-high eight points while Shannon Reno (Millbury, MA) grabbed five rebounds, Alice Kelly (Wethersfield, CT) joined Allyn with three assists and Ally McMorrow (Quincy, MA) swatted a pair of blocks.
Next up, WPI takes on Husson on Saturday at 3pm in Harrington Auditorium in the fourth contest of a five-game homestand. Williams turns its attention to conference play with a pair of NESCAC road matchups this weekend. The Ephs head to Amherst on Friday at 7pm before making the jaunt to Clinton, NY to face Hamilton on Saturday at 3pm.