Joseph's Finale Grand, but Late Yale Surge Overtakes Faltering Women Cagers, 65-56

For the Harvard women's basketball team, Saturday night proved a fitting, what-almost-was ending to a disappointing, what-could-have-been season.

The Crimson (8-18 overall, 2-10 Ivies) held an edge over visiting Yale at Briggs Athletic Center for most of the contest, before succumbing in the last six minutes, 65-56, before the season's largest crowd of 250 fans.

"There were so many ballgames where we outplayed them [Harvard's opponents] for a major part of the game, played even for some of the game, and were outplayed for only a short time that we lost," Harvard Coach Kathy Delaney Smith said after the season-ending loss.

"Tonight was a prime example of that," added the Crimson coach.

Indeed with a few breaks over the campaign, the Cantabs could easily have had a winning record. In fact, they were blown out of only three contests all year.

But against Yale, as against so many other foes, Harvard didn't get the breaks it needed.

The evening started on a melancholy note for Harvard with the honoring of the squad's lone senior, Co-Captain Wendy Joseph.

Eli, 65-56

at Briggs Athletic Center

HARVARD (56)-- Sharon Hayes Collins 6-0-12; Barb Keffer 5-2-12; Trisha Brown 1-0-2; Hanya Bluestone 0-0-0; Beth Chandler 1-1-3; Erin Sugrue 1-0-2; Kim Smith 0-0-0; Nancy Cibotti 2-0-4; Mary Baldauf 0-0-0. Totals 26-4--56

YALE (65)--Sue Johnson 8-6-22; Kelly LeComte 7-1-15; Sue Patton 4-3-11; Missy Park 3-0-6; Patti Carbery 2-2-6; Karen Yarasavage 0-2-2; Mary Gorman 0-0-0; Jill Ward 0-3-3; Molly Brostrom 0-0-0; Katy Carley 0-0-0; Jenifer Deal 0-0-0; Vicky Barber 0-0-0. Totals 24-17--65.

Halftime: H, 25-21

Fould Out--Hayes, Collins. Total fouls--Harvard 23, Yale 14, Rebounds--Harvard 38 (Collins 9), Yale 36 (Patton 9), Assists--Harvard 9 (Joseph 3), Yale 13 (LeComte 4).

The 6-ft. center ended her college career with 742 points, third best in Harvard history. Additionally, her 231 rebounds during the 1983-4 season set a single season record, and her 22 boards against Cornell last year established a single game mark.

Joseph, playing in her 98th career game, only one short of the record, ignited the Crimson to an early lead by twice feeding fellow Co-Captain Anna Collins under the hoop for easy buckets.

The hosts' early 6-0 lead was the largest by either team in the half, as the opponents stayed close. A 7-0 Harvard run in the closing minutes of the first half catapulted it to a 25-21 lead at intermission.

Yale kept itself in the game in the first half despite shooting a horrendous 21.2 percent from the field. The Crimson wasn't much better, at 38.7 percent.

The rivals traded baskets for most of the second half.

The only disruption to this pattern occured midway through the half, when Joseph sank to the floor with a sprained ankle and had to be helped off the court. She returned to action four minutes later.

A Bulldog jumper with six minutes remaining put the visitors on top for good, at 49-47. But hanging on to that lead proved no easy feat.

Harvard remained close, cutting the deficit to one with less than two minutes remaining when Sharon Hayes (high scorer with 15) sank a bomb from 24-ft.

Yale spent the rest of the contest on the foul line, scoring its last eight points from the charity stripe. For the game, the Elis held a 17-4 edge in scoring from the line.

The visitors' accuracy from the line was too much for the bottling Crimson, which managed only two free throws and a Nancy Cibotti jumper at 0:01 after Hayes' bomb.

"They did so as what every team should do to a young team," Delaney Smith said. "They pressed us."

The Bulldogs also started connecting from the floor, shooting a scorching 68 percent in the second half.

The Cantabs were hurt by the absence of point guard Anne Kelly, who was absent because of an illness in her family. "We missed her," Delaney Smith said.

Joseph finished her career with an excellent all-around performance, scoring six points, grabbing eight rebounds, handing out a team-high three assists, and blocking a team-high three shots.

"I thought Wendy played an outstanding game," Delaney Smith said. "She certainly ended her career nicely. We will miss her presence, both on and off the court."

THE NOTEBOOK: Collins fouled out of the game for the ninth time this year. Hayes also fouled out, her fourth disqualification of the season...Hayes' final scoring average of 11.0 points per game is the ninth highest in Crimson history.