NORTON, Mass. – The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's basketball team fell in a tightly contested game to visiting Babson College, 72-63, this afternoon in a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference contest at Emerson Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton in Norton, Mass. The Lyons fall to 6-12 overall and 1-6 in league play, while the Beavers win their fourth in a row and six of their last seven to improve to 15-5 and a perfect 6-0 in the NEWMAC.

Both teams shot relatively well with Wheaton owning a 45.6% (26-57) mark from the floor, while Babson shot the ball at a 45% (27-60) clip. However, each squad struggled from three-point range with the Lyons going 5-16 (31.3%) and the Beavers holding a 3-17 (17.6%) success rate. Babson owned a 41-27 rebounding advantage, including 17 on the offensive glass.

First year guard Abby Fernandes (Assonet, Mass.) scored 15 points and added five assists, two rebounds and a pair of steals for Wheaton. Senior guard Alexis Romer (Delray Beach, Fla.) reached double-figures in scoring for the fifth straight game with 15 points on 6-10 shooting, including 3-7 from three-point range and added a rebound, two steals and an assist. Senior forward Sadie Shore (Portsmouth, N.H.) contributed with 11 points, seven boards, two steals and an assist.

Junior guard Megan Bauman (East Lyme, Conn.) scored a game-high 17 points to lead the Beavers and added eight rebounds, six assists and a pair of steals, while junior forward Samantha Smith (Greenfield, Mass.) netted 15 points on 7-11 from the field to go with seven rebounds and two assists. First year guard Anika Chinthakunta (Saratoga, Calif.) came off the bench to score 12 points on 5-7 from the floor to go with two rebounds in 20 minutes. 

The teams traded the lead six times and were deadlocked with a tie score on nine occasions during the contest, which remained tight throughout the opening half. 

The Lyons opened an 8-4 lead, including five points from Shore, at the 6:35 mark of the first quarter. Wheaton maintained a 15-12 margin after first year guard Sydney Ropes (Duxbury, Mass.) knocked down a jumper with 1:43 to play in the opening quarter. 

Sophomore forward Madison Odam (San Jose, Calif.) gave Babson an 18-17 lead with a lay-up as part of a 7-2 run that resulted in the visitors owning a 19-17 lead after one quarter of play. 

The Lyons reclaimed the lead when first year guard Greta Minos (West Roxbury, Mass.) hit a step back jumper to give the home team a 23-21 margin at 7:46 of the second quarter. Fernandes later pulled Wheaton even at 29-29 with a pull up jumper at 3:01 of the quarter, before the Beavers closed out the frame with a 9-2 burst to take a 38-31 advantage into the break. 

The Lyons scored the first five points of the third quarter, including a three-pointer from Romer, to cut the deficit to 38-36 with 9:21 to go in the quarter. Wheaton stayed within 42-39 at the 6:02 mark, but Babson increased its lead to 47-39 with 2:51 left in the third quarter before settling for a 51-45 margin after three quarters of play.

The Lyons came out to start the new quarter with focus again, scoring five unanswered points, including a triple from Romer to bring Wheaton to within 51-50 at 8:03 of the final quarter. The Lyons stayed within 53-52 at 6:43, but the Beavers ripped off eight straight points to take a 61-52 advantage with 4:55 remaining in the game. Wheaton got no closer than seven points the rest of the way and Babson took its largest lead of the day at 71-60 with 15 ticks left on the clock before a Romer trifecta changed the deficit to single digits for the Lyons.

Wheaton returns to action on Wednesday, February 9 when it heads to New London, Conn. to take on NEWMAC foe United States Coast Guard Academy for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off, while the Beavers host league opponent Wellesley College on the same night at 6:00 p.m.