02/27/2008
NEWMAC Tournament: Women's Basketball Ousted by Coast Guard

NEW LONDON, CONN.-- The seventh-seed Clark University women's basketball team concludes its season with a 56-43 loss to second-seed Coast Guard Academy in the first round of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament on Wednesday.

Natalie Moyer led all scorers with 22 points to go with her season-high 13 rebounds and game-high five steals for Coast Guard.

Coast Guard (22-4), which advances to the semifinals for just the second time in the 10-year history of the NEWMAC, will now play third-seeded Springfield in the semifinals at top-seeded Wheaton on Saturday at 3 p.m. The championship game will be at Wheaton on Sunday at 1 p.m. Wheaton will host fourth-seeded WPI in the first semifinal on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Junior Sarah Roderigue made a pair of free throws to give Clark an early 10-6 lead with 11:51 left in the first half before Coast Guard used a 21-4 run to take a 27-14 lead with 5:56 left in the first half. The Bears led 33-23 at halftime.

Graduate student Jess Lamothes basket with 6:49 left in the game pulled the Cougars to within five at 44-39 with 6:49, but that would be as close as Clark would get in the second half.

Sophomore Melissa Martinelli added 14 points while senior Corinne McCormack tied a career-high with seven assists for the Bears.

Roderigue led Clark (8-17), which turned the ball over 29 times, with 15 points and a game-high 18 rebounds despite shooting just 3 for 19 from the floor.

Coast Guard shot 30.8 percent from the floor (20-65) and 23.7 percent from 3-point range (9-38) while Clark shot 28.3 percent from the field (15-53) and just 2 of 16 from 3-point range (12.5 percent).

Clark outrebounded Coast Guard 51-35 including 18 offensive rebounds.

(Courtesy of Coast Guard Sports Information)