SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Wellesley College basketball dropped a 70-41 NEWMAC matchup to Springfield College on Saturday at Blake Arena. The Pride (15-8 Overall, 6-3 NEWMAC) have now won four games in a row.

Junior Natalie Lucas (Madison, Conn.) was the game's leading scorer, registering 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting for the Pride. Senior Carrie Hess (Shrewsbury, Mass.) supplied 12 points, eight rebounds and three steals to the cause.

The Blue (9-13 Overall, 3-6 NEWMAC) saw 14 points and six boards from sophomore Ava Shane (Plano, Texas). First-year Hailey Moy (San Francisco, Calif.) recorded a trio of steals for Wellesley.

Springfield came out hot, shooting 64.3% (9-14) in the first quarter to go up 22-10 after 10 minutes. Senior Stefany Padula (Franklin, Mass.) drained a pair of threes and assisted on three buckets for the hosts.

The Pride brought its lead up to 43-23 by halftime. Junior Trinity Barrow (Evans, Ga.) and sophomore Stacy Chen (Minneapolis, Minn.) were the leading scorers for the Blue with six apiece. Lucas led Springfield with a baker's dozen tallies in the half.

Wellesley came out of the locker room with a purpose, with Shane scoring the first six points of the third quarter to cut the deficit to 14. Springfield restabilized itself and by the end of the quarter had brought the margin back to 19, 53-34.

Springfield put the game out of reach in the fourth, quickly getting the lead back over 20 on its way to a 70-41 final score.

Each team competes in a conference game at 7:00 PM on Wednesday, February 18. Wellesley welcomes WPI while Springfield plays at MIT.