Williams Women's Basketball 67-55 win over Skidmore College
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Starting three freshman and a sophomore, the Ephs (1-0) youth was evident in the first frame but a solid defensive effort and timely three-point shooting in the second half brought home a 67-55 win over Skidmore College (0-1).
"It was crazy, sloppy play at times, but that is November basketball," said Manning. "The players had a great preseason, and are talented but the first time for anybody, no matter the class, brings typical jitters. Most importantly, in crunch time, we did not see those jitters. Overall our second half defense and second half rebounding won the game for us. In the first half we had good shots, but they were not falling."
Neither team could find their shooting touch in the early going, as the score remained knotted at 8 points apiece nearly ten minutes into the contest. Skidmore found some open looks from behind the arc to pull ahead 21-15 at the 5:50 mark. Shooting almost half of their first-half field goals from three-point range, the Thoroughbreds were successful on just three attempts of seventeen but used back-to-back scores from Sharlyn Harper to build the slight advantage.
It would be Skidmore's largest lead of the night, as Manning called a timeout to regroup her squad. The last five minutes of play became the Mika Peterman and Jill Greenberg show, as the tandem combined for 22 of Williams' 30 first half points with eleven each, and pulled the Ephs ahead by five at the half.
The freshman guard, Greenberg, finished the game with 14 points, and showed quickness and a good court vision that enabled her to find Peterman in the clutch. Peterman, the senior leader and calming presence for her less experienced teammates, tallied 16 points.
Williams finally broke away nearly six minutes into the second half, as the Ephs kept Skidmore to a five-minute scoring drought and began to find their form from the outside. Chessie Jackson got the ball rolling with a three from the top of the key, while Elizabeth Hansen followed suit, nailing two back-to-back three pointers. Greenberg capped off the three-point frenzy with the Ephs' four successful shot from downtown to give the Ephs an eleven-point lead, 51-40.
The Ephs capped off the 14-0 run with the type of play that they hope will be their signature style. Jessica Harris finished off a fast break play off a turnover that forced Skidmore to take a timeout. The visiting team could not respond to the better defensive effort by the Ephs in the second half, or a much improved 43 field goal percentage in the second frame.
If the 14-0 run revealed anything about this Ephs squad, it is that they cannot live and die by their three-point shooting. Although most of their shots came off kick-outs, their inside game was fairly nonexistent. Skidmore played solid defense in the paint, but Williams must look for more balance in their offensive attack if they hope to compete against top level teams in the NESCAC.
Chessie Jackson and Jessica Harris started off the season right with double-doubles. Jackson notched 12 points and 11 rebounds, while Harris contributed 11 points and 10 boards.
Skidmore's Laura Michel scored a team-high 12 points, while teammates Megan Gaugler and Harper added 10 points apiece.
The Ephs will look to play a more complete forty minutes of basketball in the Williams Tip-Off Classic this weekend. Fitchburg and Springfield will play at 6:00 on Saturday, while Williams hosts conference opponent Middlebury with an 8:00 game time.
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