Middletown, CT - It was the first game of the new year and the first game of the season against a NESCAC team for the Williams College Ephs (8-3) as they played the Wesleyan University Cardinals (4-7). While this game does not count for NESCAC standings, it was a nice demonstration of both team's capabilities. Despite Williams struggling to finish inside at their usual rate and losing on the glass. The Ephs forcing 15 more turnovers and holding Wesleyan to only 7 assists proved to be the key difference in the match-up. Along with the help of some impressive shooting, Williams defeated Wesleyan 60-44.
Wesleyan broke the ice in this one with a jumper coming right after the tip. The Ephs started the game quietly until
Ellie Tounkara made two free throws to get them on the board.
Arianna Gerig soon had her first points with an up-and-under lay-up. However, Wesleyan had early success working the ball into the post and kept the lead throughout the entire first quarter. But a three-pointer from
Tatum Leuenberger off the assist from Tounkara along with 5 Eph steals made the game very competitive early on, 10-9 Wesleyan.
Williams wasted no time taking the lead at the beginning of the second quarter with
Cortland McBarron scoring 9 consecutive Williams points with her inside play. For Wesleyan, the same story of the first quarter played out through this one with their turnovers staining the Cardinals' impressive post-offense. Halfway through the quarter first-year point guard,
Micah Walton, drained her first jumper of the game to force a Wesleyan timeout, 20-14. Despite the timeout, the Williams lead only continued to expand, being built on the Williams defense forcing 18 Cardinal turnovers in the first half. However, a late 4-0 run from Wesleyan gave them back momentum before halftime, 25-19 Williams.
Out of halftime, Wesleyan looked like a different team. They tied the game with a quick 6-0 run built off of Williams's turnovers. However, Gerig's free-throw line jumper and a transition and-one off a McBarron steal and assist, re-established their lead at 33-29. Gerig added to this with a three out of a Williams timeout. After Wesleyan managed to chip into the lead again,
Tatum Leuenberger and
Logan Coster's late top-of-the-key threes helped Williams pull away. Tounkara's corner three was the exclamation point on a dominant shooting quarter for Williams, establishing a 47-39 Eph lead before the final quarter.
Williams so far this season has played consistently strong and clutch basketball during crunch time and this fourth quarter would be no exception. Tounkara's drive and Gerig's second and-one brought the lead to double digits, 54-44. A pull-up jumper from Tounkara and two free throws from Walton served as the dagger. Led behind Gerig's 15 points and McBarron's season-high 16 points, the final score was 60-44, increasing the Williams win streak to five.
On the win streak, head coach
Pat Manning said, "Wasn't the prettiest game but Cortland played really well and I want to highlight that, her great defense and impact on offense helped us get a jump-start. Arianna came alive in the second half and that was important for us. We are happy with our defense and all the turnovers we forced. Looking ahead, we need to get ready for WPI on Monday. I encourage everyone to come out and show their support over Winter Study."
Williams looks to carry this momentum into their next game against Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) on Monday, January 6th at 5:30 pm in Chandler Gym in Williamstown.
