NEWTON, Mass. – Five different players scored in double-figures as Mount Ida College rolled to an 81-66 win over Pine Manor College in non-conference women's basketball action on Tuesday evening at Mount Ida Athletic Center.
Katlyn Jesse (Marshfield, Mass.) scored a team-high 17 points, to go with four assists and two steals, as the Mustangs dished out 21 assists on 32 made baskets.
Brittany Crosby (Riverside, R.I.) and Angelique Martinez (Taunton, Mass.) each had double-doubles, with Martinez leading all players with 14 rebounds to go with ten points, and Crosby netting 12 points and grabbing ten boards.
The visitors were led by the scoring proficiency of Shaquanda Middleton (Savannah, Ga.), who led all players with 21 points, and the double-doubles of Shaneka Monroe (Jersey City, N.J.), who had 18 points and a game-high 10 assists and Taylor Martin (Merritt Island, Fla.). Martin scored 16 points and pulled down 12 rebounds.
Three players were in double-figures for the Mustangs before halftime, led by 13 from Jesse, who had eight in the second quarter as the Mustangs built a 20-point lead, 49-29, at the break behind a 55% field goal percentage in the second quarter and a 47.5% clip in the half.
Mount Ida led by ten points after one quarter, breaking a 9-9 tie with a 12-2 run to end the stanza. They increased their lead even more in the third quarter, shooting 50% and hitting 3-4 from three-point land, and their lead reached 33, the largest of the game, in the final minutes of the third.
Pine Manor outscored the Mustangs 24-10 in the final ten minutes, but Mount Ida had built an insurmountable advantage and withstood shooting just 19% from the field in the fourth quarter.
Middleton had 12 points of her own in the first half, and Monroe had already dished out six assists by the end of the opening 20 minutes for Pine Manor (6-11).
Breanna Muir (Wareham, Mass.) added 13 points and five assists, and Trish Liotta (Hampton Bays, N.Y.) scored 12 points, combining with Muir to shoot 5-10 from behind the three-point line.
Freshman Alisa Benson (Middletown, R.I.) added seven points off the Mount Ida bench, and first year Jillian Alperin (Needham, Mass.) scored her first collegiate points, with a free-throw and a layup, as well as grabbing a career high three rebounds.
Pine Manor got four steals apiece from Middleton and Tiana Jordan (Boston, Mass.), who also grabbed 11 rebounds.
The win snaps a seven-game skid for Mount Ida (4-13), who will look to keep their momentum rolling when they return to Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play on Thursday evening with a 7:00 pm game at Anna Maria.
Pine Manor heads back to Chestnut Hill to host Green Mountain Thursday night, with tip-off set for 5:30 pm.