SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - A strong start and wide 75-58 final score hid the nature of a Wittenberg women's basketball win over Oberlin. After the Tigers scored the first 11 points of the game, the Yeowomen fought back and made it a game until Wittenberg pulled away late in the second half. The Tigers improved to 10-6 overall and a sparkling 8-0 in the North Coast Athletic Conference, remaining the only undefeated team in league action.
Besides the additional digit in the win column, the highlight of the day came with 14:40 left in the second half when senior post Stephanie Boardman (Cincinnati, Ohio/McAuley) banked in a layup from close range, her 10th basket in an impressive 11-of-16 performance, but more importantly her 999th and 1,000th points in her career as a Wittenberg Tiger. She became the eighth player in program history to crack the 1,000-point horizon, and ended the game with 1,002. Boardman finished with 23 points and six rebounds.
After three tie scores and two lead changes throughout a closely contested game, the Tigers finally began pulling away with five minutes left. Oberlin, within four points with 4:57 to go, sent junior wing Katherine Hueter (Columbus, Ohio/Hilliard Darby) to the line where she sank both free throws and sparked a 13-0 run. Wittenberg extended the lead to 17 points, which became the final margin.
Hueter scored four more points in the run to give her 14 for the game, in addition to 10 rebounds for one of the Tigers' two double-doubles, plus five assists and two blocks. Senior wing Carrie Dyer (Copley, Ohio/Copley) provided the other, leading the team in rebounds with 14, including 10 on the defensive end, and pairing that with 16 points.
Support from the rest of the roster was key in the game, led by eight points and six rebounds from sophomore post Sarah Watson (Hudson, Ohio/Hudson), while sophomore guard Allie Leopard (Urbana, Ohio/Urbana), starting in place of injured point guard Elise Jenkins (Elida, Ohio/Elida), scored seven points and shared the team lead in assists with Hueter at five.
Senior forward Amber Lough (Springfield, Ohio/Northwestern) played her most significant minutes of the season, grabbing six rebounds and three steals on top of two points and an assist.
The Tigers next travel to Earlham on Saturday, Jan. 27, for a 6 p.m. matchup with Earlham (2-13, 1-6 NCAC), the only NCAC team Wittenberg has yet to face this season.
Written by: John Strawn '07