The Wittenberg University Tigers have had their ups and downs in recent weeks, but like the men's team the hope is that they will hit their stride soon.
Since finishing second in the Kiwanis-Wittenberg Holiday Classic to No. 4 ranked University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire on Dec. 29, the Tigers have gone 2-2 in NCAC games. The Tigers started the new year with an 88-44 victory at Hiram on Jan. 5 as 15 players hit the floor and 14 scored at least one point in the game. Three players, sophomore guard Stephanie Campbell (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern), freshman guard Amber Bishop (Batavia, Ohio/Batavia)and senior guard Natalie Estep (Fairborn, Ohio/Fairborn) all led the way with nine points.
The next day, however, the Tigers came out flat in the second half and were stunned by the league-leading Allegheny Gators, 83-55. Sophomore guard Kate Rolf (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Carroll) led the Tigers with 15 points and six rebounds, but Wittenberg managed just 21.6 percent shooting in the second half and committed 25 turnovers in the game.
Redemption nearly came on Dec. 10 as the Tigers battled co-NCAC leader and preseason favorite Ohio Wesleyan down to the wire before falling 61-57 at the HPER Center in Springfield. Campbell led three Wittenberg players in double figures with 13 points, while sophomore forward Tiffany Keller (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw) and senior center Jamie Brafford (Monroe, Ohio/Lakota) also finished in double figures. Rolf chipped in with nine rebounds and five assists.
Finally, Wittenberg rallied to capture a hard-fought 64-53 NCAC victory on Jan. 13 at home against the Kenyon Ladies. Rolf dropped in 19 points, Keller added 13 and freshman forward Geri Woessner (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood) chipped in with 10. The Tigers won the battle of the boards 53-31 and held the Ladies, the defending NCAC tournament champions, to 31.7 percent shooting from the field.
Rolf leads the team in scoring and rebounding with 11.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. Campbell is also averaging in double figures with 10.5 points per game, and she tops the conference in steals with 52 in 14 games.