Winning on the road in the NESCAC is certainly no picnic. In fact, it might be the opposite of a picnic. First of all, you’re inside, there are no tasteful blankets spread in a beautiful field, and rarely does your host offer you a sandwich or even a glass of lemonade. Usually visiting teams on a given NESCAC weekend feel fortunate to escape 1-1 and if they manage to go 2-0 a celebration is certainly in order. This weekend in women’s basketball didn’t exactly follow the trend I just played out above. Of the 10 games this weekend visiting teams managed to eke out 5 wins, good for a .500 record on the weekend. Of course though, there were upsets and blowouts and tight games, and certainly plenty of movement in our power rankings! Let’s get right down to it.
1.) Tufts (12-0, 2-0)
Results: Defeated Bowdoin 46-43, defeated Colby 70-58
Tufts, who remains at the top of D3hoops poll as well as our own, had one of the tougher slates of games this weekend if only because they played Bowdoin to open their NESCAC play. I had speculated in my previous column that Bowdoin could be the best team in the NESCAC heading into conference play, despite having losses while Tufts and Amherst remained undefeated. Well, apparently I annoyed the Jumbos who outlasted the Polar Bears in what could certainly be described as a rock fight. Neither team shot better than 31 percent from the field for the game and there were a total 52 turnovers over the course of the game. Tufts was able to control the ball a little bit better, only turning it over 22 times to Bowdoin’s 30. After this hard fought game Tufts returned to form against a determined Colby team, outshooting, out rebounding, and out assisting the visiting Mules. Tufts won’t fall from this top spot until they lose a game, but a weaker bench (only mustering 9 points in the game against Bowdoin) and questionable rebounding (were out-rebounded by 8 by the Polar Bears) are cause for concern for the Jumbos. Their defense is top notch, and it will carry them a long way this season, so if the Jumbos can figure out some of these smaller issues they will be close to unstoppable.
2.) Amherst (13-0, 1-0)
Results: Defeated Williams 76-44
Amherst coasted to victory in their only NESCAC action of the weekend, dominating the Ephs and retaining their number 2 overall spot in this list and in the D3hoops rankings. Amherst led 50-19 at the half and was able to ease into a sure victory, looking dominant on both ends of the floor. Amherst is particularly impressive in the paint where they battered Williams for 46 points and managed to secure a +14 rebounding margin. This is par for the course for Amherst, who leads the NESCAC in average rebounds per game. 11 members of the Amherst team managed to score and 4 of their 5 starters scored in double digits, illustrating their depth and balanced style of play. Before the NESCAC season started Hannah Hackley ’18 had been one of the preeminent threats for Amherst but she was outshone in this game by both Emma McCarthy ’19 and Ali Doswell ’17 who scored 15 and 18 points respectively. I was worried about Amherst’s lack of depth but in this game they proved me totally wrong.
3.) Bowdoin (11-2, 1-1)
Results: Lost to Tufts 46-43, defeated Bates 70-58
As I mentioned earlier no team should be ashamed to go 1-1 in the NESCAC on a road weekend. That being said I’m sure the Polar Bears will be disappointed that they couldn’t upset Tufts and prove they belonged in the same conversation as the two teams ahead of them. We’ve already discussed the Tufts game above, but it’s worth reiterating that Bowdoin shot horrendously in this game. Barely cracking 30 percent from the field does not bode well for the team when facing elite defenses like Tufts. The fact that Bowdoin (now ranked 19th in the D3hoops national poll) relied on 21 of their 43 points from bench player Abigail Kelly ‘19 is also cause for concern. Of course, these fears could have been alleviated by shellacking Bates on Saturday, but Bowdoin needed a dominant fourth quarter to escape the lowly Bobcats by 12. Bowdoin shot better in this game (38% from the field), but to truly challenge the teams above them Bowdoin will need to up that number considerably and continue to dominate the glass (they finished the weekend with a +20 rebounding margin).
4.) Williams (11-3, 1-1)
Results: Lost to Amherst 76-44, defeated Trinity 68-54
Losing to the second ranked team in the country is hardly something to cry about, but Williams has to worry over the fact that they were absolutely blown out by Amherst. The 32 point defeat to Amherst was Williams worst lost on the season and snapped an impressive 4 game winning streak. Of course, the Ephs bounced back on Sunday defeating Trinity away from home 68-54. Trinity, whom I had ranked 4th in my preseason rankings. Trinity is a talented team and Williams clearly outperformed them. The defense was particularly impressive, holding Trinity to a measly 28.6% from the floor and forcing the Bantams to commit 13 turnovers. In both games Williams was led in scoring by the tandem of Devon Caveney ’17 and Amanni Fernandez ‘18, who combined to score 60 points on the weekend. The biggest problem for Williams is that their bench only produced 25 points through the entire weekend, this will need to improve in the coming weeks.
5.) Middlebury (10-2, 2-0)
Results: Defeated Wesleyan 76-63, defeated Conn College 58-56
I wrote in the preview that Middlebury’s biggest weakness was their occasionally anemic offense. I seemed to have struck a chord with a Panther or two as they scored their most points of the season on Friday against Wesleyan and eclipsed 70 points for the first time since the second game of the season. The Panthers were of course led by NESCAC player of the week Sarah Kaufman ’18, who tied a school record with 7 threes against Wesleyan and then made the game winning shot against Conn the next day. Kaufman led the team in scoring both days and was a force to be reckoned with. Middlebury has to be feeling good about securing two difficult road wins early in the year. If Kaufman continues to play this week Middlebury might be able to scare Tufts on Friday night and should defeat Bates on Saturday. 3-1 or 4-0 after two weekends in the NESCAC would be huge for the program and a massive confidence boost for the team.
6.) Conn College (10-3, 1-1)
Results: Defeated Hamilton 70-53, lost to Middlebury 58-56
Conn gets bumped up a spot here due to Trinity falling so heavily to Williams. The Camels did little to impress this weekend, defeating a team they should beat in Hamilton and falling in a close game to a team apparently on the rise in Middlebury. The Camels again relied heavily on their two go-to players Mairead Hynes ’18 and Payton Ouimette ’19. Hynes led the team in scoring both games and Ouimette was the second leading scorer in both games as well. Conn will need to find a reliable third option to continue a string of positive performances in NESCAC play. Liz Malman ’17 might just be that third option, but we will have to see who the Camels lean on as the season moves forward. The most glaring issue for the Camels came on the glass: Conn was out rebounded in both games this weekend, and that will need to change sooner rather than later if Conn has hopes of obtaining a NESCAC title.
7.) Trinity (9-3, 0-1)
Results: Lost to Williams 68-54
Only having one game in a weekend would seem like a positive for a team, but the Bantams seemed lethargic in their Sunday defeat at the hands of Williams, so perhaps the extra day did more harm than good. The game would have been even more of a blowout if Erica Junquet ’19, who had only averaged 7.8 points per game, hadn’t exploded for 17. As mentioned previously, Trinity was held to a paltry 28 percent from the field and was decisively out rebounded by the Ephs. Trinity’s starters, only one of whom managed to crack double digits in points scored, will need to step up for this team to remain competitive in the NESCAC. Home games next weekend against Wesleyan and Conn College should be a great opportunity for this team to get back on track and prove they’re legit.
8.) Hamilton (7-5, 1-1)
Results: Lost to Conn College 70-53, defeated Wesleyan 48-46
Hamilton is one team that stayed pat during the weekend’s slate of games. The Continentals were really outclassed by the Camels on Friday night. Their defense struggled to slow down Conn, who shot over 50 percent from the field for the game. Hamilton also relied heavily on their bench for their offense as two of their starters failed to reach the 5-point mark on the game, and only one starter managed to sneak into double digits. Falling behind 35-9 at one point in the first half really illustrated the difficulty this team had in scoring the ball. The team came back nicely on Saturday defeating Wesleyan on the road. Holding the Cardinals to 23.8 percent from the field was key to their victory since the starters struggled to generate points for the Continentals, who relied on 22 points from their bench to put away the struggling team from Wesleyan. Hamilton is a fringe playoff team that needs their stars to produce for the rest of the NESCAC season to ensure their position in the conference and not let their season end in disappointment.
9.) Bates (4-9, 1-1)
Results: Defeated Colby 64-57, lost to Bowdoin 70-58
Bates, in my preseason rankings, was definitely the bottom team. They were the only squad with a losing record and had struggled to score or play defense. A strong showing this weekend, however, has catapulted the Bobcats up several spots. Allie Coppola ’17 led the Bobcats to their upset of Colby by notching a career high 24 points. She also added in 16 rebounds just for good measure. That was the real key to Bates’ victory over Colby – absolute dominance on the boards. They finished with a rebounding margin of +21, and pulled in 44 rebounds overall. The team also had a strong showing against the highly regarded Bowdoin, keeping the game close until the Polar Bears were able to pull away in the fourth quarter. Coppola added 10 rebounds and 5 assists in this game to cap off her already stellar weekend of play. Bates will need to limit their turnovers (they averaged 20 per game for the weekend) if they want to remain competitive in NESCAC play and keep moving their way up in the rankings.
10.) Colby (6-6, 0-2)
Results: Lost to Bates 64-57, Lost to Tufts 70-58
Colby is surely disappointed after an 0-2 start to the season. The Mules were hammered on the boards this weekend, losing the rebounding battle by a whopping 25 rebounds over the course of two games. Colby also had a hard time generating points off their bench, only scoring 12 total this past weekend. And to add onto the rest of their struggles, their defense was certainly below average. Tufts managed to shoot 50 percent against the Mules while Bates managed to score on 40 percent of their shots. Colby’s team relies heavily on a couple of their starters to generate nearly all of their offense. This weekend it was the stellar play of Katie McCrum ’19 who dropped 22 points on Tufts (6-8 from three-point territory) and 11 on Bates. The Mules will need their star, Haley Driscoll ’18 to step up in the coming weeks after a disappointing weekend point total of just 20.
11.) Wesleyan (5-7, 0-2)
Results: Lost to Middlebury 76-63, Lost to Hamilton 48-46)
Wesleyan surely hoped a couple early home games would help propel them into the discussion as a potential playoff team, but their disappointing results from the weekend seem to indicate otherwise. While Wesleyan isn’t the only winless team in league-play ) Colby and Trinity are right there with them), they have to be upset that they couldn’t hold serve at home even one time this past weekend. The loss to Middlebury is understandable. It’s hard to beat a team when one player knocks down 7 three pointers by herself, but the Hamilton loss has to be truly heartbreaking considering the team led for the entire first half before a lackluster third quarter allowed the Continentals to creep back into and eventually steal the game. But Wesleyan fans should not despair just yet. Though they bring up the bottom of the rankings after the first week of play, the teams below the top three in the league are so close in talent and skill level that a late season run could catapult any number of stragglers into the playoff field. Of course, Wesleyan will need to right the ship quickly. Games against the juggernaut that is Amherst and the hungry-for-their-own-NESCAC-win Trinity Bantams next weekend will need the Cardinals’ full attention.