SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Carnegie Mellon Tartans hit 19-of-24 free throws in a back-and-forth second half to hold off the host Wittenberg Tigers, 78-74, in the second semifinal game of the 2007 Charles B. Zimmerman Memorial Classic.
The win moved Carnegie Mellon to 6-3 overall on the season, while the Tigers dropped to 2-4. The Tartans moved into the championship game against John Carroll University, a 72-61 winner over Manchester in the day's first game, while Wittenberg will square off with Manchester in the consolation game. Tip times are 12:30 p.m. for the consolation contest and 5:30 p.m. for the championship game.
The difference in the game was free throw shooting as Carnegie Mellon cashed in on 22-of-28 opportunities, compared to a 6-of-13 performance for the Tigers. Wittenberg was whistled for 22 fouls, while the Tartans picked up just 14 in the game.
After a slow start, the Tigers appeared to get things going in the late stages of the first half to take a 37-35 lead into the locker room at halftime. The lead stretched to 46-40 after a lay-up by sophomore guard Victoria Leali (Jackson, Ohio/Jackson) at the 17:07 mark of the second half before Carnegie Mellon responded with stunning swiftness as a 10-0 run spanning just 54 seconds put CMU back ahead. The teams traded the lead until the 8:22 mark when CMU's Rachelle Roll hit two free throws, starting a trend.
The Tartans made just two field goals in the final 10:02, but they cashed in on 12 fouls called on Wittenberg over the final 12 minutes of the game to hang onto the lead. The Tigers closed to within one point on a lay-up by senior post Katie Gregorevich (Northfield, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) at the 2:35 mark, but they couldn't break through as CMU hit 8-of-10 free throws in the 2:09.
Carnegie Mellon put four players in double figures offensively, led by Stacie Aleski's 18 points. She hit 8-of-8 from the free throw line, including 4-of-4 in the final minute. Leah Feola added 15 points and nine rebounds in 28 productive minutes off the bench, while Corey Innes added 14 points and Ashley Rothwell chipped in with 10 points, four assists, seven rebounds and three steals.
The Tigers were paced by Gregorevich with 18 points and four assists, while junior guard Kristin Donawerth (Harrison, Ohio/Harrison) added 13 points and six steals in 24 minutes off the bench. Sophomore wing Elise Jenkins (Elida, Ohio/Elida) added 10 points and seven rebounds. Wittenberg shot 42 precent for the game while taking 21 more shots from the field than CMU, and the Tigers won both the rebounding (37-36) and turnover (23 committed to 29 for CMU) battles.