SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Smith College basketball team used just eight players during Tuesday night's road game at Westfield State University. That shortened roster was more than enough to lead the Pioneers to victory, which came by an 80-67 final score.

Things started slowly for the Pioneers (2-6), who fell behind 13-6 after the first six minutes of competition. However, the visiting team fired back by out-scoring the Owls (4-3) 15-to-six over the next 5:03. Junior forward Tia Karapoulios (Cypress, Calif./Cypress) was the driving force behind the early comeback, as she scored five of the 15 points in the surge.

From there, Smith went on a 12-2 run to push their advantage to 12 (33-21) behind seven of senior guard Alyssa Barrett (Berlin, Conn./Berlin)'s 10 first half points. The Pioneers carried their double-digit advantage into the half, leading 37-26 after the first stanza.

The Bears got to within four (40-36) with a 10-3 run through the first 3:42 of the second half. That was as close as they would get, however, as the Pioneers shot 54% from the field during the half to seal the win.

Sophomore guard Jade Chihara (Lahaina, Hawaii/Lahainaluna) led a quintet of double-digit scorers with her first career double-double, scoring 10 points and grabbing 12 boards. First-year forward Samantha Alakai (Honolulu, Hawaii/Punahou School) notched her seventh double-digit scoring output of the season with 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting. Barrett added 13 points and eight rebounds, while first-year guard Paige Marquez (San Francisco, Calif./Saint Ignatius College Preparatory) chipped in 12 points to the winning effort. Karapoulios went for 10 points.

Smith shot a season-high 50.9% from the field on 27-of-53 shooting, while holding the Owls to a season-low 25% (18-of-72) from the field. The Pioneers also made 5 of their 10 attempts from behind the arc, and outscored Westfield State in the paint by a 36-to-20 margin.

Smith will look to keep its winning ways going on Wednesday, Dec. 31, when they host Bridgewater State University. Tip-off for Community Day is set for 2 p.m.