Defense Shines as Athenas Top Redlands on Road

REDLANDS, Calif. – The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's basketball team held the Redlands Bulldogs to just 45 points and did enough on the offensive end to take home a 58-45 victory on Wednesday night. Kailee Severt (CMC) dropped 16 points, thanks in large part to a 9-10 effort from the free throw line to lead the scoring for CMS. Kate Parrish (CMC) added 12 points off the bench to help lead the Athenas past the Bulldogs for their eighth SCIAC victory of the season.

Maya Love (CMC) finished a point shy of a double-double, grabbing a team-high 12 rebounds and collecting nine points.

The Athenas started off Wednesday's game with a 4-2 lead after a layup from Love and a pair of free throws from Severt. Over the next 2:30, the Bulldogs used a 7-0 run to take a 9-4 lead. The Athenas quickly climbed back into the game with jumpers from Corinne Bogle (CMC) and Maezelle Millan (CMC) to make it 9-8.

A 7-2 run from the Bulldogs answered the push from CMS and gave Redlands a 16-10 advantage with 1:23 remaining in the quarter. Three free throws from Severt ended the quarter and the Athenas trailed by just three at 16-13 heading to the second period.

An early bucket from Redlands in the second quarter put CMS down by five, but the Athenas battled back and eventually took the lead back thanks to a 12-4 run. Following a layup from Severt, the Athenas held a 25-22 lead with 4:25 remaining in the half.

A slow offensive stretch for both teams followed the run and CMS carried a 27-24 lead into the half.

The Athenas came out of the half on a mission and their three-point half-time lead quickly turned to a 13-point advantage after a strong opening five minutes after the break. A free throw from Kate Parrish gave the Athenas their largest lead of the game at 39-26 with 4:59 left in the third quarter.

Redlands would not go down easy. Playing in front of their home fans, the Bulldogs pulled within seven at 45-38 by the end of the third quarter.

The majority of the fourth quarter was closely contested, but CMS held the upper hand throughout. The Bulldogs did pull within five at 50-45 with 2:06 remaining in the game. Despite Redlands keeping it close, the Athenas pulled away late by scoring the final eight points of the contest to claim the 58-45 win. Four free throws and layups from Lindsey Cleary (CMC) and Maya Love sealed the deal.

The win improves the Athenas to 15-3 on the season and 8-1 in the SCIAC. CMS will next take the floor on Saturday when they travel to Cal Lutheran to take on the Regals at 4:00 p.m.