Wolves drop one to Davenport, pull off win against Indiana Tech
Kyle Schafer
Issue date: 2/19/08 Section: Sports
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After dropping five of the previous six games, the Wolves headed into a week of winnable games against conference opponents. A short bench has plagued the Wolves for most of the second half of the season, which has led to some tired legs, near the end of games.
On Wednesday, UM-D took a trip out to Grand Rapids, where they played Davenport University, who was ranked seventh in Division II N.A.I.A. play.
The last time these two teams played, Dearborn kept the score close for most of the game - even with Candace Cobb leaving the game early with an ankle injury - and almost upset the Panthers when they were ranked No. 12.
This time around, UM-D would have to do it again with just seven players. This time, it was Lynnea Harris who was ineligible to play due to a discrepancy in credit hours.
Following coach Pinkowski's mantra of winning the first and last five minutes of every half, the Wolves came out, played the Panthers tough and held them to few points early, but also scoring very few. After five minutes, the Wolves were ahead 5-2.
It looked to be a very low-scoring game, as both offenses were setting up and calling plays, but also faced with vicious defenses. Scoring picked up, and shots started to fall for both teams. The Wolves got excellent penetration, and the Panthers attempted to execute more three-pointers.
The Wolves had several five-point leads and seemed to be handling Davenport for the most part. However, Davenport worked their way back into the game and took a 37-33 lead to the locker rooms. The Wolves outshot the Panthers in the half, 47 percent to 31 percent, but Davenport had six more possessions, and had an easier time getting to the free-throw line and hit 11 of 13.
The Panthers came out after the half and scored a quick deuce. But, the Wolves snapped off a 7-0 run to take a 40-39 lead.
Moments later, as the Wolves led 46-43, Katie Roberts was fouled and headed to the line with a chance to put the Wolves up by six. She hit two of the three free throws to put Dearborn up by five with 14:25 left in the game.
At this point, Davenport's shooting started to pick up, and they turned the tables on the Wolves. The Wolves' short bench caught up with them once again and Davenport's perimeter shooting started to pick up. The Panthers ran off a 17-2 run over nearly five minutes of play and ended any hopes of a Wolves comeback.
When the game finished, it looked like another Davenport blowout, but the final score (85-64) does not tell the tale of a UM-D squad that played another tough game against one of the nation's best.
In the losing effort, Chanel Bridges put up 20 for the Wolves, while Kandice Perryman scored 10 and pulled down 15 rebounds for yet another double-double and Cobb had five steals. Meanwhile, Jeanette Woodberry scored 25 points for the Warriors, with eight of 18 from the floor and nine for 11 from the charity stripe. Sara Haverdink poured in 12 all on her four three-pointers. Lynn Blomberg had 10 boards and four blocks.
Saturday saw a stark difference in the strength of their opponent in the Warriors of the Indiana Institute of Technology. The Wolves overcame a 10-point halftime deficit to come back and beat Indiana Tech by a bundle, 71-59, when the teams last played some two and a half weeks ago.
It was Senior Day for both the men's and women's teams, and Harris (who was still benched, due to credit hours) and Perryman were honored before the game.
The game kicked off and the Wolves went to town, jumping out to an early lead. The best part about that lead was that the Wolves kept it for the entire game.
The first half saw Bridges and Perryman score 15 and 12 points, respectively, as they buried the Warriors by 19 points, 53-34, on pace to score over 100. The Wolves shot the rock at a stunning 73 percent in the half, as they were able to get the ball inside for a lot of layups and short-range jumpers.
"They're executing, they're putting free throws in and that's the big thing," said coach Mary Pinkowski after the half. "We're picking up defenses, and we're executing what we need to be doing."
In the second half, there was a lot less scoring, but the Wolves still had their way with Indiana Tech. The Wolves were superior in every way to the Indiana Tech team, and cruised to an 89-52 victory.
Tech's Robin Jackson shot nine for 13, with 23 points in the loss. For the Wolves,, Bridges also scored 23 points and had five assists. Perryman, had 18 points, 15 rebounds and five steals. Two other Wolves, Nicole MacLeod with 14 and Chelsea Acho with 13, scored in double digits. Acho also had five steals, and MacLeod swatted away three.
With one more game left in the season, the Wolves seem to be playing good ball. The team already has more wins this year than they have had in a very long time.
Tomorrow, the Wolves will head back to Grand Rapids where they will play Aquinas College, who they lost to by three points on a last-second three pointer three weeks ago.
The game will be the front half of a doubleheader with the men's team.
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