After earning a trip to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA tournament, the women’s basketball team is 2-3 this season, after some tough early season matches against non-conference teams.
The team kicked off its season in the Tip-Off Tournament at Marymount University in Virginia. In the first game, the Cardinals faced a strong Gettysburg College team. In a close battle, Gettysburg edged the team 64-60. With 10:36 remaining in the second half and the scored knotted at 41, Gettysburg went on an 11-0 run. But refusing to give up, the Cardinals cut the lead to three, with a minute to play. But a missed three pointer by Nikki Maletta ’08 sealed the victory for Gettysburg. Despite the miss, Maletta led the team in three-point shooting, with four from behind the arc.
In the second game of the tournament against King’s College, the Cardinals once again came back from a large deficit late in the game, cutting a nine point King’s College lead to two, with 3:10 to play. A 3-point play by Ashley Mastrangelo ’06 sealed the victory for the Cardinals as they went on to win 59-52, earning a spot in the tournament consolation game.
Facing Trinity University from Texas, the Lady Cards trailed the whole way with their opponents lead growing to as many as 19 in the second half. But like in the first two games, the Cardinals stormed back cutting the lead to two with five minutes left in the game. However, this was as close as the team would come to victory, as Trinity scored key baskets down the stretch, winning 82-70.
Frustrated by the tough early season losses, the team dominated St. Joseph’s College in West Hartford on Nov. 29. The Cardinals jumped out to a 21-4 lead, midway through the first half and never looked back, winning 73-34. The team was led by tri-captain Hannah Stubbs ’06 with a double-double adding 18 points while shooting 75 percent from the field and adding ten rebounds. Mastrangelo also impressed, shooting a perfect 10 for 10 from the free-throw line
On Dec. 1, the team hoped to build some momentum but was defeated 57-44 by Salve Regina College in Newport, Rhode Island. In a close match, Salve Regina broke a tie at 33 with an 8-0 run in the second half. From that point, Salve Regina led by no less than six. Stubbs dominated again, scoring half of the Cardinal’s 44 points.
After a tough early season on the road, the team hopes to pick up a few wins at home, starting tonight at 6 p.m. against the Coast Guard Academy.
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