SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. (Dec. 1, 2010) – Led by junior Kelly Slattery, the Springfield College women's basketball team downed Mount Holyoke College 48-37 in the NEWMAC opener for both teams this evening at the Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium. The forward piled up 20 points on 10-of-11 shooting from the floor while also grabbing five rebounds and dishing out three assists. It was Springfield's first win of the 2010-11 campaign.

Mount Holyoke was paced by sophomore guard Angelica Pascual, who recorded 13 points and five boards. She went 3-of-5 from the field and 5-of-6 from the free throw line en route to her fourth double digit scoring effort of the season. Junior forward Tricia Chase totaled eight points and six rebounds, while classmate Bree Hollinger pulled down seven boards. The Lyons were limited to just 26.0% (13-50) shooting from the floor.

Springfield finished with a 28-8 advantage in the paint and outrebounded the hosts 37-33. The Pride converted 42.3% (22-52) of their shots from the field. Slattery was joined up front by senior forward Amelia Sapowsky, who tallied 10 points and six boards. Sophomore guard Meghan Biondolillo chipped in with eight points, four rebounds and three assists. As a team, the guests racked up 16 assists on 22 made baskets.

Neither side led by more than two points in the early going, as the teams jockeyed for position. A three-pointer by junior guard Christine Chancy put Mount Holyoke in front 9-8 at the 10:57 mark of the first half.

Springfield gained control with a 14-1 run over the next nine minutes. Biondolillo highlighted the spurt with a pair of three-pointers. Her second was followed by a layup by sophomore forward Emily Walker, which gave the Pride a 22-10 cushion. They took a 22-12 edge into the locker room.

A jumper by Sapowsky pushed Springfield's lead to 36-22 midway through the second stanza. She gave her team a 40-27 advantage with another jumper at the 6:27 mark before Mount Holyoke made things interesting with six unanswered points to trim the margin to 40-33 with just over four minutes remaining in regulation. Pascual scored four of the six points during the run, knocking down a pair of free throws and a jumper.

From there, the Pride responded with a 6-0 run of their own to put things away. They made four of their final shots down the stretch.

Both squads will resume their NEWMAC schedules on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Mount Holyoke (1-4, 0-1 NEWMAC) will visit Wellesley, while Springfield (1-4, 1-0 NEWMAC) will host MIT.