CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Coast Guard Women's Basketball lost on the road Wednesday evening to MIT, 77-66, in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) quarterfinals. The Engineers improve to 17-9; the Bears close out the season 13-13.

Junior Lily Mika led the Bears with 13 points, five rebounds, and three steals, followed by sophomore Kelly Hagerty with 12 points and nine rebounds. Junior Kira Wood also scored in double figures with 10 points, while Glory Blethen, Julia Mann, and Jacqueline Ward each added nine points. Wood and Blethen each had nine rebounds, while Ward grabbed five. Ward also dished out five assists, Dorothy Stotts had three, while Mann and Hagerty had two apiece. 

Coast Guard fell behind early 11-2 in the first quarter, before cutting the lead to four at 15-11. However, MIT hit a three to extend the lead and end the quarter. The Bears hit a jumper, a three-pointer by Ward, and a layup by Hagerty to tie the game at 18 just 90 seconds into the second quarter. The Engineers used a 13-5 run to go up 31-23 with 4:08 to go in the half, but the Bears chipped away and a Blethen jumper at the buzzer brough it to within four, at a score of 35-31.

The Bears used seven straight points from Mika to spark a 20-8 run to take a 51-43 lead with two minutes left in the third. Although, the Engineers had a run of their own, ending the quarter up 52-51. The first 1:24 of the fourth quarter was a back-and-forth affair with five lead changes and a tie. Two free throws by Mann gave the Bears a 57-56 lead. Unfortunately, a layup by MIT put the hosts ahead for good and kicked off a 16-6 run that spanned six minutes. Wood buried a three-pointer to bring it within 72-66 with 1:31 remaining. However, missed free throws for the Bears and a made jumper from MIT gave the Engineers the win.

MIT outshot the Bears from the floor (41.2% to 37.9%), from beyond the arc (41.2% to 28.6%) and from the free throw line (73.7% to 71.4%). The Engineers also outrebounded the Bears 44 to 42.

This was the final game of the 2022-23 season for the Bears and the final career game for Senior Jacqueline Ward.