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AMHERST, MA. – On
January 26, 2008, Williams women's basketball defeated
Amherst at home to end the Lord Jeff's 17-game win streak and
bid for a perfect season. This year, with
similar circumstances on the line for the home team, the Ephs
couldn't accomplish the same momentous feat against the
top-ranked Lord Jeffs, as Amherst (23-0, 8-0 in NESCAC) defeated
Williams (17-6, 6-2), 86-52.
Amherst continues its quest for the first
undefeated regular season in program history, and remains one of
only three unbeaten teams in Division III. The
Jeffs have won the past three match ups with the Ephs, and the last
four of five. Williams had won 14 straight games
against their archrivals since 2001, until Amherst grabbed a win at
home on January 12, 2008.
The Lord Jeffs continue their dominance over
their opponents, leading the nation in scoring margin (+29.0), and
rank third in scoring defense (47.7 points per
game). Their effectiveness from both ends of the
floor was clear in the opening ten minutes of the half, as Amherst
jumped out to an 18-4 lead.
“We were not executing on either end
early in the game,” said Williams' head coach Pat
Manning. “We
looked to be in a panicked state, and had no
confidence. They sensed that, and attacked from
the start. We have to play with more composure
and did not make a strong effort, particularly on the defensive
end. We had to make
smarter decisions than we did.”
Williams shot just 29.6% from the floor, while
Amherst was successful on nearly half of their field goal attempts
(17-of-35, 48.6%) in the fi
rst twenty minutes of the game. The Lord
Jeff's defensive pressure caused the Ephs to turn the ball
over a whopping 14 times, turnovers with which the home team
consistently capitalized on the other end.
Williams would cut the lead to as little as
twelve, following a Grace Rehnquist three and a Taylor Shea bucket
with 4:05 remaining in the half. Rehnquist was
the driving force
for the Ephs in the first half, scoring 10 points on 3-of-5
shooting from behind the arc. The Ephs
couldn't come any closer though, heading into the break down,
39-25.
The Ephs came out in the second half looking
energized and ready to make a game of it. Kelsey
Ham scored the first five points to get within eleven points of the
lead at 41-30. A few possessions later, Shea
continued the early second half run and scored with a rare trey to
narrow the gap to nine. That is the closest the
Ephs would get in the second half.
“I was happy that fought back in the
early second half,” said Manning.
“But we made a couple of mistakes, turnovers, rushed
shots. Amherst is going to make you pay for
those mistakes.
Amherst stepped up their game big time in the second half.”
Amherst began to rain three's, as
Caroline Stedman went on a tear following the mini-run by the
Ephs. She drilled two
three's from behind the arc, and the rest of the team
followed. The Lord
Jeffs shot 56.3% from three-point range in the second half.
Stedman scored 11 second half points on 7-of-15
shooting. She is
averaging 20.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 3.3 steals
per game in the past four NESCAC contests. She
finished today's game with comparable offensive numbers,
scoring 17 points.
Amherst closed out the game with the same
margin of victory as their last contest against Williams this
season, by twenty-four points, 86-52.
“We have to let games like this
go,” continued Manning. “Last
weekend we rebounded nicely from a loss on Friday, and we will do
that this weekend.
You can't afford to not bounce back in NESCAC.”
Rehnquist was quieted in the second-half,
scoring only one point after a strong opening twenty
minutes. She finished the game with 11
points. Chessie
Jackson added 11 points as well. Taylor Shea was
a presence down low for Williams, grabbing a team-high 10
boards.
Four other Lord Jeffs scored in double digits
along with Stedman.
Jackie Renner scored 11 points for Amherst, and added 14 rebounds
for a double-double.
Shannon Finucane scored 14, while Sarah Leyman and Kristyn Dunleavy
chipped in 12 points apiece.
Williams will travel to Trinity tomorrow for a
2:00 p.m. contest in their final regular season game of the
season. The Ephs have
already secured a first-round home game in the NESCAC tournament on
Saturday, February 20.
