Worcester, Mass. – Megan Grondin (Cumberland, Maine) came off the bench to score a season-high 14 points, including the game-winning free throws with 21 seconds remaining and Clark University rallied for thrilling a 50-48 win over MIT in New England Women's And Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon.

The win for the Cougars improves their record to 5-8 overall and 2-6 in league games, while the Engineers drop to 6-7 and 3-4 in conference action.

Grondin's two free throws capped a furious Clark rally after being down by as many as 15 points late in the first half.

The Scarlet and White shot just 22 percent in the opening 20 minutes and committed 11 of their 17 turnovers. MIT, meanwhile, coming off a 60-59 upset of No. 22 and previously undefeated Wheaton on Thursday, took full advantage, building a 12-2 edge a little less than nine minutes into the contest.

MIT's edge ballooned to 24-9 with less than three minutes as the Cougars struggled making up ground after opening the contest going just 1-for-11.

Grondin helped the Cougars get close before the break scoring six of the half's final eight points on an array of jump shots, making the score 26-15 going into intermission.

The lead stood at double digits after Mari Kordell (Ijamsville, Md.) made a layup early in the second half but Clark got a hoop from Esther Cohn (Chapel Hill, N.C.), a pair of free throws from Ashleigh Condon (Hull, Mass.), a short jumper from Olivia Lyons (Belmont, Mass.) and two strong inside finishes from Aretha Sullivan (Worcester, Mass.) to make the score 29-25.

MIT still held a five point lead at 43-38 at the six minute mark, but the lead was down to one  at 46-43 after two more free throws from Condon, an Emily Reilly (Marlboro, Mass.) three-pointer and a Grondin hoop sandwiched around a Michelle Battapaglia (Katonah, N.Y.) freebie and a Maya Ramachandran (Fremont, Calif.) basket.

The Cougars took their first lead on a Brooke Brennan (Weston, Mass.) baseline jumper at 47-46 but the Engineers grabbed back on the strength of a Sabrina Drammis (Hilton Head, S.C.) score.

Reilly then split a pair of free throws that knotted the score at 48-48 with less than two minutes to play.

MIT had two excellent chances to go ahead but two Kordell three-point tries danced out of the rim and when Grondin got interior position on the following trip down the floor, she was fouled setting up her game-clinching free throws.

As the score might indicate, the game was pretty even with both teams connecting on just one three-pointer, each teams going 11-for-18 from the charity stripe and Clark holding a slight edge in rebounds (45-43) and committing just two fewer turnovers.

Ramachandran led all scorers with 16 points and four rebounds, while Drammis notched a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Rachel Hunt (Arlington Heights, Ill.) came off the bench and racked up seven points, 13 rebounds and four blocks in just 17 minutes for the Engineers.

In addition to Grondin's strong performance off the bench, Clark got 11 points from Reilly, four points and 11 rebounds from Cohn and a six-point, nine-rebound effort from Gwyneth Ivory (Ashland, Mass.).

Clark will now hit the road for two games beginning with Wednesday's tilt against league newcomer Emerson, while MIT will host Babson on Wednesday as well.