Women's Basketball Falls to #1 Amherst, 74-30

AMHERST, Mass. -- The Amherst College Mammoths continued their undefeated season with a 74-30 win over visiting Bridgewater State University in non-conference women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon at LeFrak Gymnasium.

The top-ranked Mammoths (7-0) gave up single digit points in the second, third, and fourth periods and forced 17 turnovers in the game.

Cam Hendricks led the way for Amherst with 18 points and 11 rebounds. She shot a perfect 4-4 from outside and finished 7-8 from the field.

Amherst only allowed Bridgewater to score nine field goals in the entire game, four of which were three-pointers.

Bridgewater State put the pressure on Amherst in the opening period, jumping out to a 9-3 lead with two field goals from Chanelle Melton (Brockton, Mass.) and a three-pointer by Sara DaSilva (Chelmsford, Mass.). After the Mammoths closed the gap to one, DaSilva connected for another trifecta to make it a 12-8 game.

A Hendricks three and a pair of layups by Emma McCarthy helped Amherst take the lead and hold a 15-13 advantage at the end of one.

Hendricks started the next period with another triple, and the Mammoths outscored the Bears 26-2 in the second quarter, not allowing Bridgewater to score until just over a minute remained in the half.

Amherst forced eight turnovers in the first half and grabbed 21 rebounds to Bridgewater's 12. Madeline Eck and Hendricks led the way offensively for Amherst with 12 and 11 points, respectively. Eck went 6-10 in the first half and Hendricks shot a perfect 4-4 as Amherst cruised into halftime with a 41-15 lead.

Amherst suffocated the Bridgewater offense again in the second half, holding Bridgewater to six points in the third and nine in the fourth. Bridgewater shot 25% from the field for the game compared to Amherst's 51%. Amherst made eight threes in the second half and was able to stretch their lead all the way to 50 with just a minute left.

Eck finished with 13 points to go along with seven rebounds and four assists, while McCarthy checked in with ten points, four boards, two steals and two blocked shots.

Rhiana Page (Brookline, Mass.) led Bridgewater with seven points, four rebounds and a steal, while DaSilva added six points, three boards, a steal and two blocks.

The Mammoths have a few weeks off before heading to the West Coast for a trip that will take them over the New Year's break. Their first stop will be a 1:00 pm game against UC Santa Cruz in Las Vegas on December 28th.

Bridgewater State (1-7) hosts Wentworth on Thursday, December 14th at 5:00 PM as the Bears look to snap a seven-game skid.