The Justice

Media Credit: David Sheppard-Brick Forward Amanda Wells '09, left, dribbles the ball during a game against Bowdoin College last Sunday.

After being upset by Kenyon College in the championship game of the Brandeis Tip-Off Tournament last season, the women's basketball team left no doubt they would regain their tournament title this year.

Facing No. 15 Bowdoin College in the championship game last Sunday, the unranked Judges never let up as they led for nearly the entire game en route to a 71-44 victory. It was the sixth time in the last seven years that the Judges have won the tournament, and the win moves the Judges to 3-0 on the season.

"It was a huge win for us," point guard Lauren Rashford '10 said. "Defensively and offensively we just picked it up on both sides of the court. ... We worked well as a team, we pushed the ball, and it was a huge win for us. We know that we can definitely beat anybody if we play how we did [Sunday]."

Brandeis fell behind 5-3 less than two minutes into the game but would never trail again as they scored 15 straight points to pull ahead 18-5 with 11 minutes, 41 seconds left in the first half. The Judges took a 38-24 lead into halftime.

"Getting off to a good start was key, and the key was that we just kept building on it," coach Carol Simon said, "because [Bowdoin's] a team that can really make some spurts; they can score quickly because they have a lot of three-point shooters. But we held their spurts down."

The Judges were up 49-34 with 13:56 left in the second period when they scored 17 straight points to pull ahead 66-34 with 5:58 left to play.

Guard Jessica Chapin '10, who had a team-high 13 points and was second on the team with three assists, led the Judges in scoring. For her efforts she was named to the all-tournament team. Tournament Most Valuable Player center Lauren Orlando '09 had 12 points and eight rebounds in the contest.

"It's not really about one single person," Orlando said about winning MVP. "We all won it together. [Winning MVP] is great, but we all did it together."

A pair of second-year players also played a big role in the Judges' win. Forward Amber Strodthoff '11 continued where she left off after a rookie season that saw her finish fifth on the team in scoring and in a tie for second on the club in rebounding. Strodthoff finished with a team-high nine rebounds and six points off the bench against Bowdoin. In just her second career start, guard Diana Cincotta '11 had eight points and led the team with five assists, a career high.

Continued...

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