The women's basketball team proved to be as unpredictable as the New England weather this past weekend. The Big Green played very flat in a 56-52 loss at the University of Pennsylvania on Friday night. Then they quickly rebounded for an inspiring 62-53 victory at Princeton University the following night.
"The turn-around between the two games was remarkable," Coach Chris Wielgus said. "Back-to-back road games are always killers, and we really picked ourselves up after Friday's loss."
The weekend split leaves the Big Green's record at 12-9 overall and 7-2 in the Ivy League. The win at Princeton was especially important, because it kept Dartmouth tied atop the league with defending champion Brown. The Tigers dropped back into second place with Yale.
Dartmouth falls to Penn, 56-52
The Big Green played a lethargic first half in Friday night's loss, shooting only 26 percent (7 for 27) and allowing Penn to open up a 32-25 halftime lead.
"I'm disappointed we did not play a half against Penn," Wielgus said. "We were not mentally sharp."
Dartmouth managed to fight back in the opening minutes of the second half and even led at one point, 36-34. But the Big Green couldn't get any closer, and Penn eventually opened up a 12-point lead before winning 56-52.
"We just couldn't get our momentum going," Wielgus said.Sally Annis '97 had another outstanding offensive performance for the Big Green, leading all scorers with 19 points. She also added five steals.
The opposite end of the court was dominated by Ilsa Webeck '94, who blocked a school record eight shots. The 6-foot-4-inch Webeck was matched up with Penn's 6-foot-3-inch center Katarina Poulsen for most of the game, which makes the feat even more impressive.
"Penn kept going inside, and Ilsa was moving well and blocking shots," Wielgus said.
Webeck added seven points and five steals. Betsy Gilmore '94 had 13 points and five assists, and Brandi Jones '95 scored seven. Kira Lawrence '96 pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds.
Dartmouth downs Princeton, 62-53
Saturday night's performance at Princeton helped ease the bitterness of Friday's loss.
"It was a great game between two of the top teams in the league," Wielgus said. "We showed lots of poise, and I'm delighted with the victory."
The Big Green held a slim 28-25 halftime advantage, but put the Tigers away in the second half with stifling defense.
"Princeton is an excellent outside shooting team," Wielgus said. "It didn't matter, though, because our perimeter defense was great."
The Tigers shot only 27 percent (seven for 27) and did not convert a 3-pointer during the second half.
"Princeton, like all Ivy teams, tried to go inside to get Ilsa in foul trouble," Wielgus said. "Ilsa played really good defense and forced them to kick the ball back outside. They couldn't get any shots off."
Gilmore led all scorers with a career-high 17 points, including nine out of 10 from the foul line. Annis added 13,Webeck had nine and Lawrence and Stucker each contributed eight.
