Worcester, Mass. – Emily Reilly (Marlboro, Mass.) scored nine straight points for Clark, helping the host Cougars erase a late second half deficit and post a 63-54 win over Springfield College in New England Women's And Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) women's basketball action on Wednesday evening.

The victory for Clark pushes their record to 4-0 on the season and 1-0 in league play, while the Pride falls to 1-3.

Reilly led all scorers with 18 points and seven rebounds on 7-for-13 shooting to lead the Clark offensive attack.

Springfield opened the gates on the offensive, racing out to a 16-6 lead midway through the first half behind the scoring of Jaime Bickelhaupt (Brookfield, Conn.) and the interior presence of Emily Walker (East Lyme, Conn.).

Clark answered with a 12-0 run to take an 18-16 edge and then went on a 9-2 spurt capped by a Brooke Brennan (Weston, Mass.) three-pointer that sent the Cougars into halftime ahead 27-21 after a Meghan Biondolillo (Levittown, N.Y.) three-pointer with less than a minute to play.

The Scarlet and White stayed ahead in the opening minutes of the second half as Kelsey Giedymin (Shrewsbury, Mass.) and Esther Cohn (Chapel Hill, N.C.) knocked down key three-pointers. As they did in the first half, however, the Pride became the aggressor and eventually regained the lead at 44-42 on a conventional three-point play by Andrea Moschetta (Harrison, N.Y.) at the 7:58 mark.

Down by two, Reilly went on her personal scoring streak, first connecting on a pair of free throws, then dropping in a three-pointer. She followed that up with a short jumper and a finish on the break sandwiched around Springfield free throws by Bickelhaupt and Heather Lewis (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.), making the score 51-48 with 5:21 remaining.

A pair of Megan Grondin (Cumberland, Maine) free throws sparked another Cougar scoring spree – this one a 10-2 run that featured free throws from Ashleigh Condon (Hull, Mass.), more freebies from Grondin and a dagger three from Brennan that helped seal the Clark victory.

Neither team shot the ball well, with the Cougars connecting on 33 percent of their attempts and the Pride going 17-for-66 (26 percent).

Clark scored 17 points off of 19 Springfield turnovers, but the Pride won the battle on the glass (51-48) and got 19 points from its reserves.

In addition to Reilly, the Cougars had Grondin finish with 12 points and five rebounds and Giedymin total nine points and seven boards. Condon, meanwhile, stuffed the stat sheet with nine points, seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals.

The Pride had three players reach double figures led by Moschetta's 13 points and five assists and Bickelhaupt's 11 points and eight rebounds. Biondolillo added ten points in 32 minutes, while Walker was dominant on the glass, grabbing 18 boards in just 22 minutes.

Clark will return to the hardwood on Saturday with a visit to Coast Guard, while the Pride will look to snap their three-game losing streak with a trip to Wellesley College. Both games are slated to tip off at 1:00 p.m.