Jan. 20, 2008
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. -- Just like last year, it was another thriller between the Lady Monarchs and Tribe of the College of William & Mary at Kaplan Arena and history repeated itself as the No. 15/20 Old Dominion women's basketball team walked away with the win. The 63-55 victory gives the Lady Monarchs their eighth straight win and their eleventh victory in their last twelve outings.
Senior Megan Pym (Newfield, N.Y.) led a trio of Lady Monarchs in double figures with 14. Junior Tiffany Green (Chesapeake, Va.) added in 13, along with eight boards, and classmate Jazzmin Walters (Norfolk, Va.) contributed 12 points and six assists.
The Tribe saw Kyra Kaylor lead all scorers with 18 points, while Kelly Heath came off the bench for 16.
Neither team shot particularly well in the first half and it took some time before either team began hitting any shots. The Lady Monarchs established an 8-2 lead to being the game, but it would the largest lead Old Dominion would see in the half.
The Tribe would capture its first lead the 6:45 mark on two of Heath's 16 points. The remainder of the opening stanza would endure six lead changes and five ties with Old Dominion clinging onto a three-point, 30-27, halftime edge. Walters was able to give the Lady Monarchs the lead heading into the lockeroom with two seconds left until the intermisson by converting the traditional three-point play.
William & Mary held a brief lead in the opening minutes of the second half, but Old Dominion found themselves establishing a 10-point lead midway through. Walters gave the Lady Monarchs its largest lead of the afternoon with 7:50 left in the game at 52-40. However, the Tribe made a comeback and what was once a 12-point Lady Monarch advantage was erased to one with 1:31 remaining.
Following Walters' bucket, William & Mary went on a 16-3 run, closing the gap to 56-55. Kaylor would score 10 of the Tribes' 16 points during the run before fouling out with 1:11 on the clock. Kaylor's foul put Green at the line, putting the Lady Monarch junior in a similar circumstance to last year. In 2007, Green, who at times struggles from the charity stripe, iced two free throws to seal last year's victory. This year, Green once again went to the line and nailed both her free throw attempts and followed up with a lay-up after the Tribe missed a three-pointer in an attempt to tie the score to seal the game.
William & Mary was held scoreless over the final 1:31, without a field goal over the final 3:47 of the game. Walters went 3-of-4 from the line for the final margin.
The No. 15/20 Old Dominion women's basketball team's road trip continues next week at Northeastern and Delaware. The Lady Monarchs travel to Boston and Solomon Court to take on the Huskies on Thursday, January 24th. Tip-off is at 7:00 p.m. Old Dominion then makes its way to Newark, Delaware and the Bob Carpenter Center, site of the 2008 CAA Women's Basketball Tournament, to take on the Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens on Sunday, January 27th. Tip-off is at 2:30 and the game will be aired on Comcast SportsNet (Ch. 35 - Hampton Roads). Al Koken and Jody Lavin-Patrick will be on the call.