Bernell DorroughA slide in the polls was expected after Washington University’s snag against 22nd ranked New York University (NYU). Thanks to the team’s strong performance over the course of the season, however, the Bears fell only two places in the polls- from 5th to 7th.
Spirits were high for the team during the week – especially after the team’s win against Brandeis on Sunday in which the Bears’ prolific offense and stingy defense returned to form. Players were especially excited about this weekend’s upcoming games against conference rivals Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and the University of Rochester.
Rochester recently lost its first game of the season this past Sunday in double-overtime, 82 to 78. Case Western Reserve, Rochester, and the Bears are all tied atop the University Athletic Association (UAA) standings. Rochester was ranked first in the nation in the USA Today/ESPN/WBCA DIVISION III Coaches’ Poll but fell to 4th after Sunday’s loss.
While Rochester is no doubt “a big game,” according to Head Coach Nancy Fahey, its significance is somewhat lessened due to the strength of the UAA Conference. The remaining games of the season are all against conference teams, including two more games against Rochester in the coming weeks. Nevertheless, a sweep of this weekend’s inter-conference games would be a step in the right direction, pulling the team ahead in the tightly contested and highly competitive UAA Conference. The top three teams each are tied at 4 – 1, with NYU and Brandeis nipping at their heels at 3 – 2. Should the Bears wish to prove that its setback against NYU was an anomaly, a win is crucial against Rochester, especially if the team hopes to stake an early claim as the best team in the country.
“We’re not going to deny [that] we know the importance of the game,” said the Bears’ leading scorer Senior Lesley Hawley. “It’s a real challenge . . . We’re excited to see how we stack up [against Rochester].”
With only two players averaging double digits in scoring and a field goal percentage at 41 percent, Rochester’s offense does not appear particularly potent at first glance. The offense is deceptively effective though and averages a healthy 69.1 points per game. Their surprisingly strong offense is complemented by a defense that is just as stingy as the Bears’. While both Rochester and the Bears will count on their strong defenses, the outcome of the game may depend on which team’s offense is best able to withstand the opposition’s suffocating defense.
For Fahey, it has been her job this week to develop a strategy to slow down Rochester’s two stars: Erika Smith and Kelly Wescott. Fahey noted the difficulty of stopping an offense that features multiple players who can attack and are offensive threats. Smith, a 5’6″ guard out of Sherman, NY, is averaging nearly fifteen points and just under six rebounds a game. Wescott, a 5’11” forward from Burke, NY, is averaging 12.6 points per game, while snagging seven-and-a-half rebounds and a ferocious 2.4 steals per game. It will certainly be a challenge for the Bears to stop Rochester’s two pronged offensive attack.
Rochester’s defense will have its hands just as full in defending the Bears’ dynamic trio of shooters and defenders. Leading the team is senior guard Lesley Hawley of Springfield, MO, who leads the team in scoring with 14.7 points per game. Hawley has been pulling double duty on the defensive end as she has snagged a robust 2.6 steals a game. Shooting alongside her are sophomore Kelly Manning and junior Hallie Hutchens, who average 12 and 11 points per game respectively.
The keys to the game, according to Fahey, are to keep Rochester off the foul line and play good team defense, both of which should help ignite the Bears’ offense. Avoiding too many fouls against Rochester may prove to be the most important key. Against NYU, the University was out-shot at the charity stripe 47 to 14, which was easily the biggest contributor in the loss. Hawley, Manning, and Beehler each fouled out in that game. Hawley was the only player to crack double digits on the team.
Despite the foul trouble that plagued the team against NYU, players do not plan on abandoning their defensive intensity in exchange for fewer fouls called against them. Against Brandeis, the Bears were out-shot at the foul line by only 17 to 12.
While the Rochester game is an important step in the Bears’ road to the championship, the players cannot lose focus and forget about CMU, who the Bears will be playing on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. CMU, riding a nine game losing streak coming into tonight’s game against Chicago, has won only three games all year and none within the conference. The team has lost its games by an average margin of 16.6 points per game. The University has won by an average of nearly 23.
“We can’t overlook them,” said Hawley. “We can’t overlook anyone in this conference.”
Hawley, due to her breakout performance this season both on and off the court, has been promoted to captain, After the excitement and season-long anticipation leading up to the game with Rochester, the Bears may seem prime for a letdown, to which CMU would certainly be willing to oblige. But at this junction in the season, says Fahey, the “veteran players” of Washington still follow their coach’s instructions to take each game as it comes. This mantra was repeated by Hawley who is confident there will be no letdown.
“We’ve shown all season that we’re not going to let up on anyone,” Hawley said.