2007 NEWMAC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT - Aitchison's last-second, full-court dash and hoop push Wheaton past Clark, 74-72

February 21, 2007

NORTON, MA- Junior Becky Aitchison (Norwalk, CT/Trinity Catholic) capped a full-court dash by converting a floater in the lane with 1.8 seconds remaining to lift the fourth-seeded Wheaton College women's basketball team past number-five Clark University, 74-72 in the first round of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament on Wednesday evening in Emerson Gymnasium. The postseason victory was the Lyons' first since 1996 and pushed them to 10-0 all time in conference tournament games at home.

Wheaton moved to 17-9 by snapping a three-game losing streak, while the Cougars saw their season end at 12-13. The Lyons improved to 12-1 in the postseason in Emerson Gym, and they advance to the semifinals at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) to face the top-seeded Engineers on Saturday at 4:30 p.m.

Six players scored as the Cougars tallied a 16-5 run to forge a 63-51 lead with 8:20 remaining in regulation, but Wheaton quickly regrouped. Sophomore Bri Smith (Westford, MA/Westford Academy) hit a three-pointer, followed by a pair of free throws by senior Kim McCormack (Milton, MA/Milton), a three from sophomore Krystin Hickey (Manchester, NH/New Hampton School), and two more freebies off the hands of McCormack. Hickey then converted a three-point play with 4:55 left, capping a 13-0 run and giving the Lyons a 64-63 edge.

Sophomore Katie McCloskey's (Wilbraham, MA/Minnechaug Regional) three 15 seconds later put Clark back on top, but McCormack knocked down another pair of free throws to draw Wheaton even. The lead again changed hands on Cougar senior Ashley Auclair's (Williamsburg, MA/Hampshire Regional) hoop, but Smith nailed another long-range shot from the top of the key to make it 69-68 with 1:13 left and ignite a raucous crowd.

Freshman Jillian Camilleri (Lancaster, MA/Nashoba Regional) hit two huge buckets in the final minute for Clark, first putting the visitors up, 70-69 with 53 ticks to go, but senior Casey Sorbara (Port Chester, NY/Trinity Catholic) countered for Wheaton with a drive through traffic and a lay-up with 28 seconds remaining. Sorbara then picked up a steal and was fouled, hitting one free throw before Camilleri dropped in a game-tying jumper with 6.7 ticks to go. However, Aitchison took the inbounds pass and went the length of the court, driving into the lane and sending a floater rattling around and in. Clark never possessed beyond midcourt on the ensuing play.

To begin the game, sophomore Sarah Roderigue (Oakland, ME/Messalonskee) was key to Clark's attack, playing a hand in the first 15 Cougar points. After trailing by an early 7-2 count, the Lyons shot 6-of-9 during a 17-6 run that put them up 19-13. Freshman Jenny Champney (Bedford, MA/Bedford) hit a long jumper from the top of the key to give Wheaton its largest first-half lead at 24-16 before Clark rallied.

During a 7-0 run, Roderigue dropped in a lay-up before assisting on McCloskey's three that made it 24-23 with 7:21 to go before intermission. Clark scored nine of its final 15 first-period points from the charity stripe, forging ahead on senior Jess Lamothe's (Westboro, MA/Westboro) freebie with 37 seconds remaining. Roderigue converted a lay-up on a breakaway to close the scoring, and Clark took a 38-35 lead into the locker room.

Hickey tallied a game-high 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting, hitting all five of her free throw attempts, while Smith notched 19 points off the bench, canning a career-high-tying five three-pointers on eight tries. McCormack added 14 points by going 4-of-7 from the field and 6-of-6 from the charity stripe, while Aitchison hauled down a career-high-tying 12 boards with three steals. Sorbara added four assists in 22 minutes. The Lyons went 21-of-23 on free throw tries, as their 91.3 percentage was the seventh-best single-game performance in program history.

Roderigue nearly finished with a triple-double, tallying 20 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, as well as notching three steals. In the first half alone, Roderigue scored 13 points and assisted on five of the seven Clark field goals that she didn't score herself. Camilleri added 17 points and seven boards, while Auclair had nine points and seven rebounds. The Cougars held a 41-32 advantage on the glass, corralling 20 on the offensive end.

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