SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – The Wittenberg women's basketball team had the game under control, but a 20-0 run to open the second half assured the Tigers of victory in an 81-46 win over Wooster on Saturday. They improved to 18-6 overall and 10-4 in the North Coast Athletic Conference to remain in a second place tie.
The Tigers celebrated the careers of seven seniors in a pregame ceremony conducted by Head Coach Sarah Jurewicz, herself an alumna of the program. Enri Small (Columbus, Ohio/Columbus School For Girls), Katelyn Haralamos (Maineville, Ohio/Kings), Heather Schroeder (Aurora, OH/Aurora), Darbie Zirkle (St. Paris, Ohio/Graham), Jessica Brickner (Lake Forest, Ill./Hotchkiss School (Conn.)), Karen Daniel-Hamberg (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview) and Carli Swartz (Bala Cynwyd, Pa./Lower Merion) all were honored.
For Swartz, Brickner and Daniel-Hamberg, the occasion was especially memorable, as the three seniors had been unable to play their senior seasons due to injuries. The trio were named starters for the game and played the first three minutes, with Swartz and Daniel-Hamberg each scoring two points.
Zirkle went on to have a career game, scoring 24 points, a career high, and notching eight steals, tying her own career high and second-best single-game total in program history. She also topped the team with four assists and counted a block and five rebounds in her final stats line. She finished with a 50 percent shooting mark at 9-for-18 from the field, including 4-for-5 from three-point range and 2-for-2 at the free throw line.
Schroeder also put together an impressive outing, shooting 5-for-9 from the floor (56 percent) for 13 points, three rebounds, two assists and a block. Haralamos finished with 10 points and three assists with a 4-for-7 line from the field, and Small poured in eight points, three assists and three rebounds.
A total of 13 Tigers scored in the game and four more saw time on the court. As a team, the Tigers shot 45 percent from the field and 44 percent from three-point range. They turned 28 Wooster turnovers into 32 points, and scored heavily from close range with 38 points in the paint.
Wooster kept it close early, including a 16-16 tie with 10:15 remaining in the first half and down just two points at 22-20 with 7:53 left. That's when seven straight points from Zirkle made it a 29-20 game, and the lead grew to 38-27 by halftime.
After the break, Wittenberg scored the first 20 points to bury the game.
The Tigers play their final regular season home game against Kenyon at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 18, before putting the wraps on the regular season at Oberlin on Saturday, Feb. 21.
John Strawn '07