COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Senior guard Alyssa Polimeni scored 12 points, including the 1,000th of her career, to put an exclamation point on the Ursinus College women's basketball team's 63-52 Centennial Conference victory over Washington College this evening. With the win, and Dickinson's loss at the hands of 16th-ranked Muhlenberg, the Bears jumped back in line for the fifth and final playoff spot in the crowded league standings.
Senior forward Caroline Shimrock scored half of her game-high 16 points in the first quarter, and classmate Jessica Porada just missed a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds for Ursinus (10-11, 9-6), but this night belonged to Polimeni.
Leading by 18 at halftime, the only question that remained was when the Bears' senior point guard would reach the milestone. Needing seven points entering the contest, Polimeni had only three at intermission, but closed to within two on a layup with 6:45 to play in the third quarter. She was fouled in the act of shooting at the 3:01 mark, but missed the first of two foul shots to keep her on the precipice. Polimeni finally got it with 1:02 remaining in the period, on a vintage drive down the left side in transition that ended with a layup banking off the glass and in, sending the Ursinus bench into a frenzy.
Polimeni became the 14th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point mark. She added six assists and three steals to her stat line. The six helpers moved her into a tie with Diamond Lewis (2011-14) for third on the school's all-time list (334); Polimeni needs seven to take over second.
Despite coming in losers of 12 straight games, Washington College (3-18, 0-15) took an 8-7 lead midway through the first quarter on a jumper by Brynn Brouse. But Ursinus put the clamps on, embarking on a 16-0 run over the next nine minutes and change.
Junior guard Libby Lannon fed Porada for back-to-back buckets after Washington College took its short-lived lead, and the Bears were never threatened again. A jumper by Porada pushed the advantage to double digits (19-8) with 7:35 to play in the second quarter, and the senior nailed two free throws after a transition jumper by sophomore guard Rachel Guy to cap the big spurt. Consecutive elbow jumpers from senior forward Elana Roadcloud and another bucket by Guy precipitated a 29-10 bulge, and Polimeni banked in a runner in the closing seconds of the half to put Ursinus ahead 31-13 at the break.
The Bears held Washington College to 2-of-14 shooting in the second quarter and forced eight turnovers for the half; on the other end, Ursinus racked up seven assists to just one turnover. Shimrock converted a three-point play on the Bears' second possession and dropped in a triple three trips later, part of an eight-point first quarter in which she made both of her shots from the field and all three from the stripe.
The Shorewomen found their touch in the second half, shooting 51.7 percent from the floor (15 of 29) to make a dent in a deficit that grew as large as 24, but could get no closer than 11. Krahling and junior guard Ali Grundy notched 13 points apiece to lead the visitors, while sophomore forward Jordan Weir finished with 11, and Brouse added nine points and seven boards.
Roadcloud tallied six points and ten rebounds for Ursinus, the fifth straight game with double-digit caroms for the CC's chairwoman of the boards. Guy collected eight points on 4-of-6 from the field, and senior guard Carla Maccaroni scored her first point of the season on a free throw with 30 ticks left.
The Bears committed only four turnovers, matching their fewest since a 2013 contest at Swarthmore.
Ursinus is back inside the friendly confines of Helfferich Hall for a Centennial Conference tilt with Franklin & Marshall on Wednesday, February 10.