No two basketball games are ever the same.
This has been the mantra of Washington University’s women’s basketball team (14-4, 6-1 UAA) for the past week, as they have prepared to take on the exact same two opponents this weekend as they did last.
Tonight, the Bears face the New York University Violets (16-2, 5-2 UAA), who they defeated last Sunday, 78-71. On Sunday afternoon, they tip off against the Brandeis University Judges (14-3, 4-3 UAA), against whom the Red and Green scored a 69-50 win last Friday at the Field House. The biggest difference between this weekend and last? The Bears face both teams on the road, as opposed to playing in the Field House with the comfort of a supportive home crowd and the knowledge that travel won’t be a concern.
The Red and Green also come into their games this weekend with higher expectations than they have faced all season. They are currently ranked 11th in the country, their first appearance in the D3hoops.com poll since the preseason. On Sunday, they also assumed sole possession of first place in the UAA, the toughest conference in Division III women’s basketball.
Many members of the team are looking forward to this weekend’s challenge. “It is pretty fun to play a team back-to-back,” said senior guard Sarah Schell. “It almost guarantees a higher level competition the second time around.”
The Bears played a pair of solid games last weekend, exhibiting their strengths and versatility as a team. Sophomore Jaimie McFarlin and senior Rebecca Parker each reached double-doubles against the Judges. McFarlin repeated the feat on Sunday, as she attained another double-double against the Violets, highlighted by a career-high 18 points. Schell also had an outstanding career-high 32 point performance against the Violets. Wash. U.’s deep bench contributed 13 and 20 points in the wins, respectfully.
The Lady Bears know that they will face two extremely tough teams this weekend, both of whom are especially eager to avenge their recent defeats in St. Louis. The team cannot afford to hold anything back.
“We need to realize that they are going to be really fired up to play us,” said Parker. “We have to maintain our focus to keep the edge that we had all of last weekend.”