Wesleyan took on the Connecticut College Camels on Saturday afternoon in its last home game of the season. Both teams were in desperate need of a win, and the urgency was evident as each team battled throughout regulation and into two overtimes. Wesleyan, however, which hasn’t lost to the Camels since 1997, was able to pull away in the remaining minutes of the second overtime for a hard-fought 79-71 win.
Wes started the first half strong and never trailed in the opening 20 minutes of play. Both teams struggled to shoot, however, with Wes shooting 23.7 percent and Conn. connecting on 17.2 of its attempts, and intermission came with Wes up 23-14. The Cardinals had led by as many as 11 in the half, moving out to its largest lead of the game on a layup by Sam LaCroce ’12 at the 1:05 mark.
“I think that our low shooting percentage in the first half really held us back from breaking away in the beginning of the game,” LaCroce said. “This allowed Conn. to hang in [the game], and it was just a struggle to build a lead after such a rough first half.”
Coming out of halftime, the visitors immediately cut the lead to four on a three-pointer and a layup, forcing the Wes coaching staff to call timeout. After telling the team to essentially “get it together,” Wes brought the lead up to eight (31-23) but never got farther ahead than that. Conn. followed with a 21-6 run, moving out to its biggest lead of the game (44-37). Wesleyan responded, however, with a 10-3 run of its own to tie the game at 47-47 with 5:06 to play.
The last five minutes of regulation proved to be a back and fourth battle. With 34 seconds left, the Camels called a timeout, down by two, to set up a play. Conn. drove to the basket and Wes was called for a foul, which sent the Camels’ leading scorer to the line. Conn. converted the two free throws and then Wes took its own timeout. Following the inbounds pass, LaCroce drove to the basket and was fouled going up for a reverse layup, going to the line with four seconds left. Two missed free throws, though, sent the teams to overtime.
Wes started overtime strong and immediately went up 60-55 on a layup by LaCroce and a three-point basket by Erin Gold ’11. The Camels wouldn’t let up, though, and scored five quick points on their own to tie the score again at 60. After a missed lay-up by Conn. with nine seconds to go, Wes got the ball and called a timeout. The play got the ball to Melanie Ferdinand ’12, but the shot came up short to put the game into a second overtime period.
In double overtime, Wesleyan was able to pull away on free throw shots by Eileen Gaffney ’12 and Gold. The game ended in Wesleyan’s favor, 79-71.
LaCroce scored a career-high 23 points and grabbed a total of 10 rebounds. Gold also finished in double figures for her third game in a row with 19 points. Gaffney, who was plagued with foul trouble throughout the game, played only 22 minutes but scored 20 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and converted 12 of 13 free throws, which proved crucial at the end of the game.
“Having this win under our belts reminds us of what it takes to win, and hopefully the momentum from this game will propel us for our two games up in Maine,” said guard Ali Newman ’12. “Every NESCAC game is a challenge, and coming out with a win in double overtime proves we can play with the best.”
Wes will play its final NESCAC weekend up in Maine against Bowdoin and Colby. The last weekend for Wes will be extremely important as the results will decide whether or not the Cardinals qualify for the NESCAC tournament for the ninth straight season. Tip-off at Bowdoin is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday.
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