Worcester, MA --- Clark junior Ashleigh Condon (Hull, MA) tallied six of eleven points in the final 2:47 to lift the Cougars to a hard earned 58-53 victory over Worcester State on Friday in the second semi-final of the 32nd Annual Worcester City Tournament.
With the victory, the Cougars play for their twentieth city crown Saturday against host WPI Saturday at 4 PM in an all-NEWMAC affair. Worcester State will meet Becker at 2pm in the consolation matchup. In Friday's opener, WPI defeated Becker 86-25.
Clark took their lead for good when third-year Emily Reilly (Marlboro, MA) connected on a layup at 3:17 to put the Cougars ahead 52-51. Condon pushed the advantage to three when she buried a jumper with 2:37 to go.
Worcester State answered back twenty seconds later when junior Meaghan Burns (W. Brookfield, MA) took a jumper to make the score 54-53.
After the two teams came up empty on their next two possessions, Condon connected on a layup with 23.8 seconds to go then iced the game when she converted two free throws with 5.8 seconds.
Worcester State used an 11-0 spurt midway through the opening stanza to jump out to a 17-5 advantage.
The Cougars clawed their way back scoring 20 of the next 29 points to take a one point lead at 25-24 with a minute to go before intermission, but senior Meaghan O'Keefe (Warren, MA) scored a layup with five seconds sent the Lancers into the locker room with a one point advantage.
Third-year Megan Grondin (Cumberland, ME) lead the Cougars putting away a game-high 19 points and pulling down eight boards. Reilly tallied 12 points and grabbed seven rebounds, followed by Condon and senior Kelsey Giedymin (Shrewsbury, MA) who combined for 21 points and each nabbed five rebounds.
O'Keefe matched the game-high 19 points and amassed three steals on the night. Burns earned a double-double with 12 points and 10 carroms. Senior Kara Rogers (Lowell, MA) and sophomore Shannen El-Qasem (Rutland, MA) combined for 14 rebounds and nine points.
Clark held a hefty advantage in free throw shooting converting 86 percent (18-for-21) of its attempts while Worcester State struggled from the charity stripe, converting only four of its 10 attempts.
Full Release Courtesy of WPI Sports Information