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| Hannah hugs Ashten as Nadia (4) and Fran add their congratulations. (Stanford Athletics photo) |
Despite missing four players, the Cardinal women
managed to corral the Colorado Buffaloes 76-68 in overtime on Jan. 24 at
Maples.
Besides senior guard DiJonai Carrington, who has
played only five games this season, and junior forward Maya Dodson, who hasn’t
played at all, the inactive list included junior forward Alyssa Jerome and
freshman guard Haley Jones. They were injured during the 61-58 win at Oregon
State on Jan. 19.
Like DiJonai and Maya, Alyssa was in street clothes,
but Haley was absent. On Jan. 23, columnist Michelle Smith tweeted: “Latest
from @StanfordWBB on Haley Jones. Out this weekend. ‘Haley’s recovering from an
injury sustained against OSU. We’re optimistic about her recovery. Timetable
for her return is to be determined.’”
On the other hand, senior guard Mikaela Brewer was
in uniform for the first time this season, but she didn’t play.
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| Three of the coaches -- Tara, Tempie and Kate -- keep close watch on the game. (Amanda Loman/AP) |
Nerve-wracking
game
This was a game that had the 2,829 fans biting their
nails from start to finish. Stanford ended the first quarter in a 13-21 hole
and eked out a 2-point advantage, 27-25, in the second, only to drop behind 41-39
in the third.
With just over three minutes left in the fourth,
Stanford faced a 7-point deficit, 52-59. That’s when a few fans began to leave,
but they hustled back as the outlook changed.
Sophomore guard
“Lexie Hull, who scored a career-high 29 points, made a layup with under 20
seconds remaining to give Stanford a 62-61 lead. …She also had a layup in the
final 41 seconds of overtime to give Stanford a 71-68 edge,” the Associated
Press reported.
Ashten
instrumental in forcing overtime
Then a Colorado player “hit a 3-pointer with less than 2 seconds to play in
regulation to give Colorado a 64-62 lead, but Stanford tied it with a perfect
inbound pass and layup by (freshman forward Ashten) Prechtel, who scored 12
points and had four rebounds — all in the final 5:01 — to send the game to
overtime,” AP said.
In addition to her 29
points, Lexie had five rebounds, two assists and a steal in 37 minutes.
Ashten, who hails
from Colorado, added four rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal to her
credits.
Also in double
figures with 11 points, freshman forward Fran Belibi, another Colorado
resident, had five rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Besides Lexie and
Ashten, the starters were senior forward Nadia Fingall, junior guard Kiana
Williams and sophomore forward Lacie Hull.
Nine players got into
the game, and all contributed in some way.
Five combine for nine 3’s
Five players were
responsible for Stanford’s nine 3-pointers. They were Lexie with three, Nadia
and Ashten with two each, and Kiana and freshman guard Hannah Jump with one
each.
Colorado overpowered
Stanford with 36 rebounds to Stanford’s 32 and with three blocks to Stanford’s
two.
On the plus side,
Stanford had more assists, 17-9, and steals, 12-6. Colorado had 21 turnovers
while Stanford had 14.
Fouls, free throws prove crucial
In this highly
physical game, the home crowd loudly booed some calls, but in the end, fouls
were telling: Colorado had 24, while Stanford had 13. The home team capitalized
by making 19 free throws compared to the visitors’ 12.
Those free throws,
like every other Stanford point, were crucial because Colorado led for nearly
30 minutes and the score was tied for nearly three minutes.
Operatic soprano
Amelia Farber started the evening off right by singing the national anthem just
as it was written, as opposed to the off-Key, improvised versions that some
singers offer at Stanford and elsewhere.
Halftime was
highlighted by a salute to the women’s tennis team, which received its national
championship rings for the second year in a row. This team is reported to be
the winningest team in Stanford athletics.
Next up for the
Cardinal is a visit from Utah at noon on Jan. 26, when the 1990 SWBB national championship
team will be honored. A Behind the Bench will follow. Pac-12 Networks will
televise the game.
