The Oberlin Review
<< Front page Sports February 15, 2008

Pure Heart Earns Yeowomen a Win
 
Going up Strong Sophomore Liz Thompson, with ease, lays it up against the Denison Big Red. 

First-year Syr&eacute;a Thomas, hit a three-pointer with three seconds left in the women’s basketball game against Wooster, leading Oberlin to a 64-63 win.

The game, played Friday, Feb. 8, also contributed to Oberlin’s current sixth place standing in the North Coast Athletic Conference. “Friday, we played Wooster. It was the most important game of our season,” said Head Coach Christa Champion. “It wasn’t our best game, but for the last eight minutes we played with so much heart and so much desire that we deserved to win.”

Perhaps both Thomas’ three-pointer and the Yeowomen’s comeback can be a testament to the team’s heart. “The game was great, and we all pulled together for the ‘W,’” said Thomas.

According to Champion, the team had been “behind by as many as ten points at the ten minute mark….I told them to just play as hard as they can. This is it. And, we really wanted to win.”

Of the shot, Thomas — the night’s second leading scorer after captain and junior Alyssa Clark — said, “I’m just glad it went in.”  Clark also stood out with her 1,000th career point.

The next match-up was on Saturday, Feb. 9, against Denison University. “We did okay, but we had an ‘off’ shooting night,” said Champion. “We were a little bit out of synch, in part because we were so emotional over our victory on Friday.”

Denison had also played the previous evening, but managed to defeat Oberlin with a score of 74-47. Champion said that the team hit only 27 percent of their shots as compared to a normal range of 36 to 37 percent. In addition, the team went two for 12 on free throws, while they normally go for four or five for 12, according to Champion.

The Yeowomen then faced Allegheny on February 13. Champion said, “We beat them [Allegheny] the first time, but it’s harder on the road.” She noted that it has been statistically proven that there is a two and a half to three point home court advantage within the NCAC that can make the difference in games like their last one against Wooster. “We have to win the games that we should win, give a good battle to Allegheny, and sneak in an upset,” said Champion prior to the match.

However, that game ended with Allegheny coming out on top, with 73 points to Oberlin’s 52. Notable players included first-year Christina Spencer with her 12 points, a career high.

The Yeowomen will play their next game tomorrow at 1 p.m. against Hiram College.


 
 
   

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