Tigers Fight Into Third Place NCAC Tie With Win Over Kenyon
North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) women's basketball rivals Kenyon and Wittenberg at long last completed their second matchup of the season Friday evening, the twice ice-delayed game finishing in a 61-51 win for the Tigers.
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) women's basketball rivals Kenyon and Wittenberg at long last completed their second matchup of the season Friday evening, the twice ice-delayed game finishing in a 61-51 win for the Tigers.
Wittenberg moves into a three-way tie for third place in the NCAC with Kenyon and Ohio Wesleyan, all with 5-4 records.
The Tigers, now 10-10 overall, shot 50 percent in the first half to jump out to a 29-18 halftime lead, but the Ladies clamped down on the other side of the break to mount an eight-point, game-tying run that ended at 43-all with 6:38 to go in the game.
The Tigers' own defense kept Kenyon cold from the field all night in achieving the season sweep following a 74-65 win in Gambier on January 15. It was shooting that did the Ladies in over the last six minutes of the game, as they went 1-for-9 from the floor on top of six fouls and two turnovers. Kenyon finished the game shooting 26.9 percent, 18-of-67, with 19 fouls and 19 turnovers.
For Wittenberg, junior wing Lauren Cassel (Columbus, Ohio/Dublin Coffman)keyed an effective offensive attack with multiple fast break layups, both triggered by teammates and twice on her own steals. She finished the game with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting with four rebounds and two steals.
Senior wing Katherine Hueter (Columbus, Ohio/Hilliard Darby) owned the paint with 16 rebounds, 13 on defense, and extended the dominance to the rest of the floor with a team-best 15 points, five assists, three blocks and two steals.
Freshman post Cassie Whitley (Xenia, Ohio/Xenia) played 11 of her best minutes to date, and while most of her contributions Friday do not show in the box score, she did earn five points, four rebounds and two steals.
Junior post Sarah Watson (Hudson, Ohio/Hudson) added eight points and eight rebounds, while freshman guard Jaclyn Willoughby (Sidney, Ohio/Houston) also gave eight points with two assists and two steals. Junior forward Lyndsey Clark (New Carlisle, Ohio/Tecumseh) contributed seven points, four rebounds and two steals.
Thanks to the rescheduling, the Tigers' weekend is back-to-back as they host Allegheny College in a 4 p.m. NCAC matchup tomorrow, Saturday, Feb. 5, at Pam Evans Smith Arena.
John Strawn '07