Generals Grind Out Victory, Face VWC in Semifinals
Offensive Struggle Leads to Exciting Finish
February 23, 2007
Box Score

SALEM, Va. --- Washington & Lee University provided the second upset of the day in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Women’s Basketball Championship, defeating Eastern Mennonite University 53-43 in the final quarterfinal match up.  The Generals (16-10) move on to face Virginia Wesleyan College in the semifinals on Saturday.  The Royals bow out at 17-8 overall.

It was an offensive throughout as neither team eclipsed the 30-percent mark in field goal shooting.  But W&L stepped up at the right moment, winning its second game in program history.  The last time the Generals won a postseason game came in 1998-99 conference tournament in which W&L defeated Virginia Wesleyan 61-49.

Eastern Mennonite jumped out to a 9-0 lead following the opening tip, but didn’t make another shot for the next for nearly 10 minutes, allowing the Generals to regroup and take a 15-9 lead with 5:48 to play.  W&L went into the half up three at 22-19.

Washington & Lee surrendered the lead only once in the first 12 minutes of the second frame, but shaky shooting afforded a maximum four-point margin.  EMU tied the score with a little over eight minutes to play to five before W&L reasserted itself.  A three-pointer by junior Hayley James with 2:48 to go gave the Generals a 42-41 lead, an advantage that they would not relinquish.

“We felt that we had a lot of nerves and a lot of excitement,” explained Washington & Lee head coach Mandy King.  “We had been waiting for this game all week long.  We thought we were doing a good job on the defensive end and rebounding.”

James led all scorers with 16 points and 12 rebounds for her third double-double of the season.  Junior Emily Wolff added 13 points and eight boards, and senior Jessica Hunsinger chipped in six points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots.

Freshman LeLe Shumate led EMU with nine points.  Sophomore Carolyn Riley and freshman Ebony Dennis added eight points apiece.  Dennis also had nine rebounds and a pair of steals.

The Generals square off against Virginia Wesleyan at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 24, in the Salem Civic Center.

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