AMHERST, Mass. – Megan Robertson '15 had a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds as the fourth-ranked Amherst women's basketball team remained unbeaten with a hard-fought 54-48 win over No. 22 Williams.

Extending their win streak over their archrivals to 11 games, Amherst (18-0) put the brakes on Williams' (15-3) recent tear, handing the Ephs their first loss in six games.

Despite an off night shooting, Marcia Voigt '13 still led the team in scoring for the fourth-consecutive game, pouring in 16 points - including five in the last 1:35 - with seven rebounds and six assists. Bridget Crowley '13 was the only other Jeff in double figures, netting 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting, with seven boards.

Claire Baecher '13 paced Williams with 11 points and five rebounds. Grace Rehnquist '13 had 10 points and six boards, while Ellen Cook '15 and Danny Rainer '13 combined for 15 points and 13 rebounds.

Racing out to a fast start, Amherst took a 6-0 lead on a pair of Jasmine Hardy '13 free throws. Battling back, Williams netted seven unanswered, taking its first lead of the game on a Jennie Harding '13 triple. Scoring the game's next four points, Cheyenne Pritchard '16 put the Jeffs back up 10-7 before a pair of Robertson free throws made it a five-point game. 

Knocking down consecutive jumpers, Rainer kick-started a 7-0 spurt capped off by a Cook three. Tied at 21 with 3:14 to go in the half, Savannah Holness '15 momentarily put the Jeffs back ahead, but Williams closed out the frame on a 5-2 run to take a 26-25 lead into the intermission.

Opening the second half scoring, Voigt hit a trey on Amherst's first possession to give the Jeffs the edge. With Williams pulling back in front 36-35 on a Rehnquist layup 13:37, Robertson converted down low as the lead once again changed hands. Down 42-29 with less than nine to play, the home team mounted a 6-0 run, building a 45-42 lead on a Crowley jumper.

Voigt extended the cushion to four, hitting 1-of-2 from the charity stripe before Baecher finished off a nice alley-oop at 4:17 to end a 5:29 Williams field-goal drought. Clinging onto a 46-44 lead with under three to play, Robertson drained a baseline jumper with the shot clock winding down to push the margin back up to four. 

Forcing a stop, Voigt came right back down the floor, banking in a runner, while drawing the foul and converting a three-point play to make it 51-44. The Ephs trimmed the deficit to five on a Baecher jumper in the paint with 1:21 left, but Amherst hit 3-of-4 from the free throw line down the stretch to seal the 54-48 victory. 

Struggling to gain any traction offensively, the Jeffs once again relied on a solid defensive effort to carry the day. Holding Williams to a 17-for-56 showing from the field (30.4 percent) and 4-for-15 (26.7 percent) from three-point range, Amherst held a 42-40 rebounding edge, while nabbing eight steals and helping to force 14 Eph turnovers.

Amherst returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 26 against Trinity.  

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