Junior Cherie Parisi (North Attleboro, MA/Attleboro) scored a game high 21 points for the Mount Ida women's basketball team but it wasn't enough dropping a tough 68-62 loss to visiting non-conference opponent Wentworth Institute of Technology this Saturday afternoon. The Mustangs drop to 3-6 overall while the Leopards improve to 2-6 on the year.
The action was tight for the bulk of the first half with minimal scoring opportunities for both squads. The hosts led for most of the opening 10 minutes with two lead exchanges while the Mustangs led 14-13 at the 10:24 mark.
Wentworth started to heat up a bit going on a two minute, 9-0 run taking the outright 19-14 advantage capped off on a jumper by sophomore forward Kirsten Vallone (Avon, NY/Avon Central) with eight ticks left in the half. For the next five minutes, both teams would trade baskets with the Leopards maintaining a small margin up around the 4:07 mark leading 28-22.
The visitors eventually pulled away by 10 near the end of the half off a lay-up by junior Meaghan Gardner (Shrewsbury, MA/Shrewsbury) leading 34-24. Mount Ida junior Nicole Casimiro (Lee, NH/Oyster River) nailed a three right before the buzzer to slash the visitor advantage to six (37-31) going into the locker room.
The second half opened with the Mustangs cutting the lead down to two on a Hannah Blum (Raleigh, NC/Broughton) lay-up trailing 37-35. But that's as close as it would get with the visitors preserving the small edge with no push from Mount Ida to take the lead.
The Mustangs tried to mount a comeback and pulled within three on a Jenny Davis (Bristol, England/Filton College) three pointer at 44-47. But the Leopards rebuilt the advantage back to 10 twice at 11:30 and 8:57 and ultimately cruised to a 68-62 victory. Mount Ida just couldn't break out a big run to take the game over which led to their loss.
Along with a solid performance from Parisi with 21 points and seven rebounds, the Mustangs also were led by Casimiro who netted 18 points and three assists with two blocks. Blum and Davis combined for 16 points and 11 caroms as well as four assists.
The Leopards had four players in double figures including a double-double from Vallone with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Junior Jessie Coffey (Wakefield, RI/South Kingstown) added 15 points and four boards. Gardner and junior Michelle Fauci (Boxford, MA/Masconomet Regional) chipped in 12 a piece and combined for 11 caroms.
The Mustangs will wrap up this semester and host UMass-Boston in doubleheader action with the men's team this coming Tuesday. The men will play first against Wheelock College starting at 5:30 p.m. with the women's immediately following.