Bates 75, Tufts 57
at Alumni Gym

BATES WOMEN WIN 20TH, 75-57, OVER TUFTS

LEWISTON, Maine -- Senior forward Emily King (Lebanon, N.H.) scored 16 points and grabbed a career-high 17 rebounds as the Bates College Bobcats (20-3, 7-1 NESCAC) picked up a conference win over the visiting Tufts University Jumbos (14-7, 3-5 NESCAC).

After a first half in which both teams shot poorly, the Bobcats took a 28-25 lead into the lockerroom despite shooting just 29 percent from the floor (10-34). Tufts didn't fare much better, hitting 34 percent (9-26). The Jumbos hung around in the second half, staying within five points with just over seven minutes remaining on a field goal by senior forward Molly Baker (Northfield, Mass.). The Bobcats took control from there, scoring nine of the next 11 points, with the big hoop a trifecta from senior Melissa LaPointe (Salem, Mass.), Bates' only 3-pointer of the contest. Bates ended the contest on a 22-9 run that secured the 18-point victory.

Besides King's big night, first-year Lisa Golobski (Methuen, Mass.) netted 14 points and had four steals, while junior forward Kate McLaughlin (Laconia, N.H.) had 10 points, four assists and three steals. Baker and first-year center Emily Goodman (Briarcliff, N.Y.) each had 13 points to lead Tufts. Goodman also had a team-high nine rebounds.

The win was Bates' eighth in a row. With it, the Bobcats clinch their fourth consecutive 20-win season. It also increases the importance of their Saturday regular-season finale with Colby on Saturday. The White Mules are 16-7 overall and 6-2 in NESCAC after tonight's 64-50 win over Bowdoin. If Bates wins, the Bobcats would finish as the only conference team with one loss, clinching their fourth consecutive berth to the NCAA Championships. If Colby wins, they would share 7-2 records with Bates and Trinity, but own the tie-breaker, having defeated both teams head-to-head in NESCAC play. Bates won a non-conference contest with Colby earlier this season, 73-71 in overtime in Waterville.

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