BOSTON, Mass. — Grabbing its fifth straight victory, the Southern Vermont College women's basketball team won 59-49 on the road Saturday afternoon, topping Wheelock College at Moore Gymnasium in New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) play.

The Mountaineers are now 7-0 in league action (9-5 overall), marking the most NECC wins in program history with 11 games left on the regular season schedule. The loss drops Wheelock to 5-9 overall, 3-4 in against the conference.

Southern Vermont junior Sarah McDonald (Cohoes, New York) registered season-bests of 20 points ­and 10 rebounds, both team-highs, for her first double-double of the season; she also led all players in scoring, shooting a sterling 10-11 from the floor. Junior Turquoia Johnson (Montgomery Village, Maryland) added 11 points and seven rebounds off the bench while classmates Kala MacKenzie (Fair Haven, Vermont) and Amber Flagg (Windsor, Connecticut) each scored eight points to go along with nine and six rebounds, respectively. MacKenzie was a force in her own post, notching eight defensive boards and six blocks on the day.

Sophomore Michelle Woods (Wilmington, Massachusetts) led the Wildcats with 16 points and 11 rebounds, adding two steals to her double-double. Classmate Kayla Corshia (Medway, Massachusetts) followed up with nine points while fellow sophomore Katie Alsip (Quincy, Massachusetts) and junior Jen Albertelli (Medway, Massachusetts) each added seven points to go with five rebounds and three steals, respectively.

The Mountaineers shot a 22-49 clip (44.9 percent) from the floor on the day while holding Wheelock to just a 26.5 field goal shooting percentage (18-68). SVC controlled the boards with a 51-36 rebound advantage while the Wildcats held a slight 14-12 edge on second-chance points.

SVC jumped on top early, taking an 8-2 lead with help from a pair of MacKenzie jumpers. After the teams traded scores, Wheelock took to an 8-2 run of its own to tie things at 14-14 with 10:41 to go in the first. But a three-pointer by freshman Chloe Longe (Enosburg Falls, Vermont) played a part of the Mountaineers scoring the next eight points to go up 22-14 at the 8:04 mark.

Following a WC timeout, Albertelli knocked down a trey which was soon followed by a Woods layup that cut the hosts' deficit to 22-19. Free throws kept the Wildcats close until McDonald scored six during an 8-0 SVC run that put the Mountaineers up by 11 (32-21) with 3:13 left in the first. Wheelock scored the last six points of the half, sending Southern Vermont into the locker room with a 32-27 advantage.

The second period starting with SVC increasing its lead to 38-27 with the first three baskets, two coming from McDonald. WC got its offense going with five unanswered points and eventually got the Mountaineer lead to just four (40-36) with 13:57 left to go. That's when Johnson took control, scoring the last seven of an 8-0 SVC run to again go up by 11.

Not to go quietly, Wheelock continued to hit baskets midway through the stanza to stay within striking distance. A Woods layup at the 8:55 mark made it a 47-42 game, but SVC junior Javasha White (Schenectady, New York) answered with a jumper on the following possession. McDonald then scored the next three Mountaineer buckets, giving her team its biggest lead of the afternoon (55-43) with just under three minutes to play.

But once again, the Wildcats kept clawing to stay alive; a Woods three-pointer gave her team some momentum, and a Corshia layup followed a Southern Vermont turnover to make it 55-48 with 1:10 on the clock. Following a Mountaineer miss, Woods was fouled and sent to the line, but she only hit the front-end of her pair to set the score at 55-49. That would be the last point for the Wildcats, however, as White and Flagg both knocked down two free throws to seal the deal. SVC went 14-17 from the charity stripe for a season-best 82.4 free throw percentage in the win.

The Mountaineers are back on the road Tuesday for their next game, visiting Elms College for an 8 p.m. tip-off. Wheelock looks ahead to Wednesday when the Wildcats welcome Daniel Webster College for an 8 p.m. home conference contest.