ROCHESTER, NY — Foul trouble led to deep trouble for the Williams College women's basketball team Friday afternoon, the result being a 70-59 loss to perennial power Baldwin-Wallace in the opener of the Chuck Resler Tournament hosted by the University of Rochester.
Junior Taylor Shea was one of four Ephs in double figures, scoring 18 points and grabbing eight rebounds in the defeat. Chessie Jackson and sophomore point guard Jill Greenberg each contributed 13 points, and Lisa Jaris added 10. Amanda Schroeder led the Yellow Jackets with 14 points, while freshman Jessica Carpenter added 13 and Ariel Brough came off the bench to score 12 and secure a team-high 8 rebounds.
Williams (0-1) will face Oneonta State Saturday at 3 p.m. in the consolation game.
"Considering we've only been together for 2 1/2 weeks, overall I was happy," Ephs head coach Pat Manning said. "The first half was one of the best halves we've played in a long time, and Baldwin-Wallace is the toughest opponent we've opened against in recent years. There were some positives to come out of this game, and we know what we have to work on before we play again tomorrow."
Williams led 34-32 at the half Friday and after a pair of long-range jumpers by Greenberg, still held a 43-42 advantage with 13 minutes and 48 seconds left. But a Brough bucket in the paint gave Baldwin-Wallace the lead for good 26 seconds later. Foul trouble down the stretch limited the minutes of Greenberg and first-year Jennie Harding, and that hurt the Ephs on the offensive half of the court.
Brough's bucket started 12-1 run for Baldwin-Wallace that lasted 4:25 and turned a one-point deficit into a 52-44 lead.The Yellow Jackets bench outscored the Ephs' subs by a 34-5 margin in the game.
"In the second half we felt we really had to emphasize our help defense, but we were late rotating into help and that got us in foul trouble," Manning said. "And then we started making silly decisions and taking low-percentage shots."
Williams shot just 30.3 percent from the floor over the final 20 minutes, compared to 52 percent (14 for 27) shooting from the floor in the first half.
The first half was a back and forth affair, with the lead trading sides multiple times. A Harding 3-pointer from the wing gave Williams an early 13-9 lead, but the Yellow Jackets rallied for an 18-15 advantage. A bucket by Jaris off a Jackson assist regained the Eph lead at 21-20 with 6:50 left in the half. Jackson then stole the ball and fed Shea, who pulled up on a fast break and nailed a foul line jumper for a 23-20 lead.
A Jackson lay-up off an assist from Greenberg and a Harding jumper stretched the Eph lead to 27-22, but B-W rallied again and a trey from Carpenter gave them a 29-27 advantage. It was tied at 32 when Shea hit a jumper with 15 seconds left to make it a 34-32 halftime lead for the Ephs.
