NORTHAMPTON, MA - The Smith College basketball team came away with the Tyler Tip-Off Tournament crown, capping their season-opening weekend with a 76-41 win over Rhode Island College Sunday afternoon in Ainsworth Gymnasium.

The Pioneers, who are ranked No. 7 in the D3hoops.com Preseason Poll and No. 9 in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Preseason Top 25 Poll, improve to 2-0 on the year. RIC , who is receiving votes in the national poll, drops to 1-1.

Highlights

• The Smith offense came out on fire as Ally Yamada (Seal Beach, Calif./Fairmont Prep Academy) drained a three starting a 7-0 run for the Pioneers. Katelyn Pickunka (Westhampton, Mass./Hampshire) extended the lead to 14 (20-6) with a jumper at the 2:18 mark as Smith shot a sizzling 61.5 percent from the field in the opening quarter and would hold a 24-13 at the end of the first
• RIC began to chip away and trimmed the lead to eight (27-19) on a trey by Izabelle Booth but the Pioneers would hold the visitors scoreless for over six minutes as Smith was able to extend the margin to 35-22. Free throws by Jessie Ruffner (Rocklin, Calif./Rocklin) in the closing seconds of the half made the score 39-23 in favor of the Pioneers
• Smith continued to control the action in the third, outscoring RIC 22-7 and ending on a 15-0 run for a 61-30 edge going into the final period
• The fourth was highlighted by a four-point play by Tiffany Hooker (Fulton, MD/Reservoir) in the final minute to go ahead 76 -40 en route to the win

Inside the Numbers

• Katelyn Pickunka (Westhampton, Mass./Hampshire) was named Tournament MVP with a 14 point performance, which also included 10 rebounds and six steals
• Also earning All-Tournament honors was Amelia Clairmont (Laconia, N.H./New Hampton School) who added 13 points, four assists and two rebounds
• Jessie Ruffner (Rocklin, Calif./Rocklin) came off the bench to score a game-high 19 points with 11 boards and four assists
• The Pioneers shot 48.1 percent (25-of-52) from the floor, 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from three-point range, and 83.3 percent (20-of-24) from the free throw line. 
• The Anchorwomen shot 25.9 percent (15-of-58) from the field, 21.4 percent (6-of-28) from behind the arc, and 41.7 percent (5-of-12) at the charity stripe.

Up Next
Smith will hit the road for the Coastal Classic hosted by Bowdoin College next weekend. The Pioneers will open with Maine Maritime Academy at 7:30pm. 

About Smith Athletics: Smith College is a NCAA Division III member of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference that sponsors 11 intercollegiate sports. For more information log on to smithpioneers.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.