Women Cagers Win Big

The prospects for the women's basketball team on Saturday were daunting. After all, how many teams can expect to be competitive having lost three starters to graduation? Add seven incoming freshmen and a 1993-94 record of 7-19 to the mix, and a William and Mary team that crushed the Crimson by almost 40 points last season, and another rout seemed very likely.

Instead of watching history repeat itself, the Crimson, motivated by last year's humiliation, rebounded from a sluggish first half to post an impressive 77-71 victory, one that "helps us gain a lot of respect back," according to junior guard Elizabeth Proudfit.

Led by senior captain Tammy Butler and Proudfit, the Crimson took the floor with a relatively inexperienced starting line-up that included freshman forward Allison Feaster, a highly touted prospect who scored more than 3,300 points in her high school career.

Despite the line-up changes, the Crimson entered the half trailing 39-34. "It was our first big test of the year," Proudfit said. "We were nervous [in the first half] and played pretty badly, but we felt pretty good to be down by only four."

Dwelling on the memories of last year's blowout, Harvard entered the second half on an emotional high. "We picked up our team defense and got in a good groove," said sophomore guard Jessica Gelman, who finished with seven points. "Once we relaxed, we really dominated."

"A lot of us remembered [Last year's] game." Proudfit said. "The players who weren't around heard us talk and understood the revenge factor. We stepped up our game, got in their faces, and got really excited."

Proudfit was especially key down the stretch, nailing two of her game-high 6 three-pointers in the final five minutes that iced the victory. She led all scorers with 24 points.

Butler, the Ivy League's leading scorer a year ago (18.4 ppg) and the fifth-leading rebounder in the NCAA (13.2), also played a strong game, finishing with 19 points. "Tammy is the ultimate leader--she never gets flustered," says Proudfit.

Feaster handled herself nicely in her first college game, scoring nine points and providing a solid inside presence.

"All the freshmen have been really fantastic." Gellman said. "They've added so much to the team, from a basketball and a personality aspect."

Proudfit said that the Crimson stepped up their team defense effectively in the second half. However, she emphasized that the team must continue to work on its full-court press and exploit its considerable athletic ability to achieve success in its next game, at home against Army today.

Although the team's current success spans only one game, the players have high aspirations for the season.

"We lost a lot of respect last season, but have realized that we're a different team this year." Proudfit said. "I think we can now beat anyone on our schedule."

Gellman agreed. "We want to win the Ivy League and go to the NCAAs," she says. "We want to prove around the country that the Ivy League can play with anyone." Harvard  77 W&M  71