The Oberlin College women’s basketball team started the season off with a bang by defeating Notre Dame College of Ohio 68-56 on Nov. 16.
“We weren’t particularly strong in the first half of the game, but that’s not a bad sign. We have a very young team, and they’re just now learning the kind of intensity they need to win. We really stepped up our play in the second half,” Head Coach Ann Gilbert said.
One outstanding performer for Oberlin’s team was senior guard Nzinga Broussard, who contributed a whopping eight rebounds, three assists and four steals to the Yeowomen’s winning effort against the Blue Falcons.
Gilbert did not seem at all surprised by Broussard’s outstanding accomplishments. “That’s pretty typical for her,” she said. “We expect her to fare well in every category — she’s our floor leader.”
Another impressive contribution came from sophomore guard Malisha Richardson, who scored twelve points, grabbed five rebounds and shot a solid fifty-percent from the field goal line. Junior guard Sonja Spencer joined in the fun by scoring 10 points and snagging three rebounds.
“We have lots of young kids this year, and they had first game jitters. It was exciting to come away with a win in our first game of the season, and we are going to build on that,” Gilbert said.
The next stop on the Yeowomen’s November journey was Case Western Reserve University, where the team was defeated 77-63 on Nov. 17. “We were very excited about the first half of this game, because [Case] is the top team in this region and we were tied with them at the half, 38-38. I’m very impressed with our performance — they were very big, but we weren’t intimidated a bit. That was definitely the most exciting half we’ve had so far, and it’s a sign that we are going to be a good team. It was the way need to play every game — it was a collective effort, everyone contributed,” Gilbert said.
First-year Cristina Briboneria stood out by scoring 10 points and dishing out four rebounds. Broussard and Richardson continued to be steady scorers for Oberlin and the team shot a solid 85 percent from the free throw line. “We were looking to improve our shooting and we did so,” Gilbert said.
In the second half, Case outscored the Yeowomen by fourteen points. “We didn’t match their intensity,” Gilbert said of her team’s performance. She added, “We’re going to work on the first five minutes of the second half of games from now on.”
The Yeowomen met with the misfortune of another defeat at Muskingum College on Nov. 24. “We had a very good game, but I think we could have beaten them. We need to improve defensively and work on boxing out and rebounding,” Gilbert said.
Sophomore rookie Tranice Herrell stole the spotlight in the game by scoring 10 points and recording four rebounds. Once again, Richardson and Broussard put up excellent numbers — Broussard scored 17 points, had eleven rebounds, four assists, and six steals, while Richardson scored 21 points and grabbed five rebounds. As a team, the Yeowomen shot just under 40 percent for the game. Even though the Muskingum game was a loss for the Yeowomen, the team’s performance gave Gilbert a sense of the wealth of talent at her fingertips. “[The team is] playing really well. If only I can just get all these players to play well in one night,” Gilbert said.
The Yeowomen built on their improved performance against Muskingum, gaining their second win of the season on Nov. 25 against Peace College. With the 83-66 victory, Oberlin scored more points in this game than in any of the preceding games. The team shot a hot 40 percent from the floor, 33 percent from the three-point line and 77 percent from the free-throw line.
“This was a good win; it was another collective effort. Lots of players scored; we had great energy. These are the types of numbers we’d like to see, scoring into the 70s and 80s — we’d like to be doing that night in and night out. We’re going to work on that in practice every day,” Gilbert said.
First-year Karen Hahn scored nine points and had an impressive seven steals and three assists in the game. Sophomore point guard Amber Coleman scored eight points, snatched four rebounds and attacked Peace’s team with three steals.
“[Cristina] Briboneria had a great game. She scored 20 points, had five rebounds and a real highlight was she shot four out of 10 from the three-point range. This is outstanding for a first-year,” Gilbert said.
At the guard position, Broussard accomplished the incredible feat of gaining 16 rebounds and adding 12 points. Said Gilbert, “She rebounds well for us, and that’s a really significant factor [in our success]. Every time they missed a shot, she got the rebound.”
The Yeowomen took to fighting against Peace to even their record to 2-2, and looked to up their record above .500 last night in a rematch against Notre Dame. Oberlin’s home opener was just as successful as the first time they faced the Blue Falcons, as the Yeowomen prevailed by a score of 84-68.
Broussard was once again the highlight of the night: however she easily had her best game of the season and one of the best of her career. By scoring 20 points, pulling a game-high 13 rebounds, dishing out a game-high 10 assists and snatching a game-high seven steals, Broussard recorded the second triple-double in school history. Richardson helped out in the scoring by netting 16 points, and Briboneria scored 14 points and snagged a career-high eight rebounds. Notre Dame was led by Mandy Felice who racked up a game-high 29 points, while two of her teammates also scored in double figures.
The Yeowomen’s next game will at home on Saturday, Dec. 1 at 2 p.m. against conference foe Ohio Wesleyan. The team is looking forward to a season filled with hard work and joyful payoffs. Said Gilbert, “We’re a fast, pressing, up-tempo team.”