Big Second Half Propels Bulldogs Past Holy Cross, 66-60
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – It took the Yale
women’s basketball team nearly seven minutes to register its
first points of the 2009-10 season, but a team-high 15 points from
freshman Megan Vasquez in her collegiate debut and double-doubles
from both sophomore Michelle Cashen and junior Mady Gobrecht led a
furious second-half comeback as the Bulldogs downed Holy Cross on
Friday night at the John J. Lee Amphitheater in New Haven by a
score of 66-60. Yale outrebounded the Crusaders, 54-41, and held
the visitors to just 21 second-half points.
“It’s great to win a game with defense and
rebounding,” said Chris Gobrecht, the Joel E. Smilow, Class
of 1954 Head Coach of Women’s Basketball at Yale.
“It’s also exciting to play well and win early on,
especially knowing that we are only going to get better as we gain
more experience.”
Yale opens its campaign at 1-0 for the second consecutive year.
The Crusaders will start 2009-10 with an 0-1 mark.
Cashen’s double-double was comprised of 13 points and a
game- and career-best 15 rebounds, including nine off of the
offensive glass. Cashen was the last Bulldog to notch a
double-double- a 22-point, 11-rebound showing at Columbia on Feb.
21, 2009, and her 15 boards are the most by a Yale player since
Erica Davis ’07 hauled in 18 rebounds at Princeton on Feb. 2,
2007. Mady Gobrecht had 12 points, including 10 in the second half,
and 10 rebounds to round out her double-double.
Vasquez’s 15 points were punctuated by four free throws in
the closing seconds of the game with Yale clinging to a slim lead.
Senior Melissa Colborne had six points for the Bulldogs, and
freshmen Aarica West and Allie Messimer scored five in their first
taste of collegiate action. Senior captain Ashley Carter had four
points, all of which came in a single trip down the court in the
final 1:12 with Yale holding a one-possession lead. Junior Yoyo
Greenfield added three points, and freshman Ericka von Kaeppler
added two points. Freshman Alicia Seelaus knocked down a free throw
to round out the Yale scoring.
The Crusaders came out firing at the beginning of the game,
jumping out to a 16-0 lead before a Messimer jump shot at the 13:19
mark put the Bulldogs on the board. Holy Cross continued to roll in
the opening 20 minutes, as Yale never got closer than 12 points-
while trailing by as many as 18 points- en route to entering the
intermission facing a 14-point deficit, down 39-25.
“They came out playing like a team full of juniors and
seniors, and we came out playing like a team full of freshmen and
players coming off of injuries,” said Gobrecht of her
team’s slow start.
Colborne and Cashen each netted six points before the break to
pace the Bulldogs’ offense. Yale shot 24.2% from the floor
(8-33) and missed all 10 of its attempts from beyond the arc. The
Crusaders, paced by 12 points from Briana McFadden, shot 42.9% from
the field (15-35) and 62.5% from three-point range (5-8).
It looked as if the Crusaders would keep Yale at a safe distance
in the opening stages of the second half, as they led by 17 points
at 47-30 with 17:23 left in the contest. But a three-pointer by
Messimer sparked a 13-0 Yale run over the next 3:40 to cut the lead
all the way down to four points at 47-43 as the game clock read
14:19. Holy Cross netted the next field goal to regain a six-point
cushion, but a layup by West and three Gobrecht free throws over
the ensuing stretch of action reduced the Crusaders’ lead to
a single point at 49-48 with 9:19 left in the contest. After nearly
three minutes without a bucket for either side, Holy Cross tallied
the next four points to regain a five-point lead, and soon led by
six at 56-50 with just over five minutes remaining. Four quick
points by Cashen brought the lead back down to two points, and a
Gobrecht layup, set up by Carter’s fifth steal of the night,
knotted the score for the first time since the opening tip-off at
56-56. Gobrecht sank another bucket on the next trip down the court
to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the contest at 58-56. Holy
Cross took a timeout with 1:31 left to draw up an offensive play,
but the Yale defense came up with the stop as Carter ripped down
the rebound and was fouled. The senior captain sank her first free
throw attempt- her first point of the contest- and followed her own
miss for a layup and the foul. She would drain that foul shot as
well to give the Bulldogs a two-possession lead, 62-56, with 1:11
on the clock.
“Carter made the play of the game,” said Coach
Gobrecht of her senior captain’s effort down the stretch.
The Crusaders would not fade away however, as Bethany O’Dell
sank two free throws and, after an empty trip down the court for
the Bulldogs, Whitney Fremeau connected on a layup to cut the lead
back down to two points at 62-60 with 31 seconds remaining. The
Bulldogs successfully inbounded the ball against a heavy full-court
press, and Vasquez was fouled with 24 ticks left. The freshman
calmly sank a pair of free throws to give Yale a bit more breathing
room, up 64-60. O’Dell missed a layup on the next Holy Cross
possession, and the Crusaders put Vasquez back on the foul line
with 13 seconds left. Once again, the freshman delivered with two
free throws to ice the game, with Yale taking the victory by a
score of 66-60.
Vasquez and Gobrecht each scored 10 points in the second half for
the Bulldogs, while seven of Cashen’s 13 tallies came after
halftime. The Yale offense shot 48% from the field (12-25) in the
second frame to improve its mark to 34.5% (20-58) for the game.
Fremeau led all players with 18 points for the Crusaders. McFadden
netted 12 points for the game, but the 2008-09 All-Patriot League
First Team honoree was held scoreless in the second half by the
tenacious Yale defense. O’Dell also had a dozen points for
Holy Cross. Tayana Carper flirted with a double-double for the
visitors, netting nine points and hauling in a team-best eight
rebounds. As a team, Holy Cross shot 25.7% (9-35) after halftime
and 34.3% (24-70) for the game.
The Bulldogs are back in action on Tuesday, as the Black Knights
from Army visit the John J. Lee Amphitheater for a 7 p.m. contest.
Army, who defeated Wagner in its season opener tonight (74-70 in
overtime), will play at Loyola (Md.) on Sunday before making the
trek from West Point to the Elm City for the midweek tilt.
report filed by Drew M. Kingsley, Yale Sports Publicity