Quakers face NCAC leader Wittenberg on the road

For Immediate Release:
Feb. 8, 2006

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — Injuries and illness played a role Wednesday night as the Earlham College women’s basketball team battled North Coast Athletic Conference leader Wittenberg University.

Wittenberg broke open the tight contest in the second half as the Quakers battled injuries to sophomore Chelsea Caywood (Richmond, IN/Richmond) and first-year Tasha Merrill (Cedar Grove, IN/Franklin County). Both players returned after some time on the bench recovering. “We did well under the circumstances,” Earlham coach Liana Coutts said. “It was a close ball game for a long time and we just ran out of gas.”

Caywood led the Quakers with 16 points and nine rebounds, while Merrill tossed in 15 points. First-year Janee’ Covington (Indianapolis, IN/Arlington) didn’t start, but scored 10 points after missing the last two contests due to illness.

The Tigers jumped out to a 10-0 advantage early in the game, but by the 6:55 mark of the first half the Quakers had tied the contest at 23-23. Caywood even gave the Quakers a 24-23 lead with a free throw seconds later. Wittenberg, however, put together a run to go in front 37-28 with 1:33 left. Earlham scored the last five points of the period to trail 37-33 at intermission.

In the second half, the Tigers led 63-54 with 6:38 left in the game. Wittenberg out scored the Quakers 14-4 the rest of the way. “We shot the ball better in the first half than we did in the second,” Coutts said.

The Quakers were 13-of-25 (52 percent) in the opening stanza, while hitting 10-of-27 (37 percent) after halftime.

Earlham (4-19, 3-11) returns in the action Saturday at home against Kenyon College. The NCAC contest gets underway at 1 p.m. on Schuckman Court in the Athletics and Wellness Center. Box score.