Williams Women's Lose to Lord Jeffs, 65-53
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While Amherst mounted 40 minutes of intense defensive pressure and a relentless offensive attack, the Ephs floundered on both ends and fell to the rival Lord Jeffs 65-53. Amherst improves to a perfect 13-0, while Williams falls to 9-4 on the season.
In the teams' 62nd meeting, Amherst snapped a 14-game win streak by Williams. The loss was Williams' first since Jan. 31, 2001, in Chandler Gymnasium when Amherst won in overtime, 68-63. The Ephs still hold the all-time series record, 40-22.
"I give Amherst a lot of credit," said Williams head coach Pat Manning. "They played great defense and we did not get into a flow for a consistent amount of time. We had spurts of great defense and good offense, but Amherst attacked us very well."
Amherst notched the first two points of the game, and Williams would never recover the lead. Within two of the lead following a Taylor Shea jumper, 14-12, Amherst went on a 13-4 run to build a 13-point lead with four minutes to play in the first period. Williams consistently mixed up their defensive pressure, shifting from man-to-man defense and a two-three zone often. A well-coached Amherst squad responded to the defensive changes with ease, achieving success from behind the arc and inside the paint.
In a two-minute offensive possession by Amherst, Williams showed their defensive chops. The Lord Jeffs grabbed offensive rebound after offensive rebound, and deflated the Ephs effort with a shot from three-point range. While their defense was spot on, Williams' rebounding flagged. The team struggled to execute all elements of the game simultaneously, allowing Amherst to capitalize on their weaknesses.
Williams showed signs of improvement late in the first period, mounting an 8-0 run to bring the first half lead within five points, 30-25. Two back-to-back three points plays by Mika Peterman and Dominique de la Torre provided momentum for the Ephs heading into the second frame. Peterman, who averages 16 points per game, had been a non-factor in the Ephs offense. She remained scoreless until the three-point play late in the first period, and finished the game with only six points.
Looking sharp coming out of the locker room, it looked as though Williams could make a game of it. The Ephs cut the lead to one, 36-35, with 14:31 to play and forced Amherst to call a timeout and regroup. The Lord Jeffs responded, while Williams' defensive intensity disappeared. Amherst grabbed their largest lead of the night at 14 points, 62-48, with four minutes to play and closed out their first victory against the Ephs in seven years.
Poor free throw shooting and foul trouble plagued the Ephs. Williams scored only 45.5 percent from the charity stripe in the first half, knocking down only 5-of-11. De la Torre, an important presence in the paint for Williams, committed her fourth foul with 14:37 left in regulation forcing Manning to give her starting senior limited playing time at key moments in the game. The Lord Jeffs were already in the bonus midway into the second half.
Without the play of point guard Niki Savageau, Williams would have probably dug themselves an even larger hole in the first half. While the rest of the team lagged, Savageau picked up the slack by creating scoring opportunities for herself and leaving it all out on the floor.
"Niki had a great game," said Manning. "She played her heart out."
Finishing the game with 13 points and five assists, her 10-point effort in the first half certainly kept the Ephs in contention for victory. Chessie Jackson led all scorers with a game-high 16 points. Jackson was quiet in the first half, but managed to start off shooting 5-for-5. Taylor Shea chipped in 9 points.
Amherst produced a more balanced offensive effort. Three starters contributed double-digit efforts. Shaina Pollack, Samantha Swensen, and Yasmine Harik scored fifteen, twelve, and ten points respectively. Jaclyn Daignealut came off the bench to score 9 points, while Stacy Brossy added seven points.
Despite being conference rivals, today's game was not a conference matchup. Neither Williams nor Amherst has played in a conference game but the Williams-Amherst game at Williams on Jan. 26 will count towards the conference record.
Williams will look to rebound from this loss when they host Hamilton on Tuesday, Jan. 15.
