The women’s basketball team had a successful winter break, emerging with an 8-7 winning record, 1-1 in the Ivies. The mid-season was turbulent, as the Red had a five-game winning streak, capped off by a 86-74 win over St. Bonaventure. After compiling a 6-2 mark, the squad slipped and lost four in a row. Sitting at .500, the women entered their Ivy League season. They split a pair of Ivy games– a loss to Penn and a win over Princeton. The Red added a win over Albany to finish its non-League play with a winning record.
The winter games were highlighted by the play of juniors Do Stevens and Breean Walas, freshmen Tanya Karcic and Karen Force, and senior Jen Linker. Sophomore Lynell Davis pounded the boards, averaging 5.3 rebounds a game. Fellow sophomore Katie Romey is the reigning three-point queen, making 23 of 50 shots for an amazing .460 percentage. Three players are averaging over ten points a game: Linker, Romey and Stevens. The team averages 66.9 points per game, while holding opponents to 64.3 points.
A summary of how the Red came to tally such statistics and a winning record.
December 17th, at St. Bonaventure: Win — 86-74
Stevens was the hero of this game. She totaled 20 points, including 3-4 from beyond the arc and 5-6 at the line. She added three rebounds and two assists. She helped the Red maintain a steady lead, pulling away 42-30 at the half. Stevens was well aided by her teammates, as senior forward Linker contributed 16 points and six rebounds. Davis added an impressive nine rebounds and 14 points. Strong free throw shooting capped off the game, with Walas going 9-10 and the team shooting 77.1%. Stevens was named the Ivy League Player of the Week due to her strong play. This was the second time this season she achieved this honor.
December 20th, at Bradley: Loss — 58-55.
The Red lost this defensive contest, though it went down to the wire. Poor shooting and foul trouble struck both teams, with the score 56-49, 2:03 remaining and Bradley ahead. Shots by Stevens and Linker brought the Red closer. Freshman Kate Force sunk two free throws to bring the team within one. With 16.8 seconds left, Walas missed a three-point shot, going 4-6 from beyond the arc on the game. Bradley kept the ball till .7 seconds left, then made two foul shots. The Illinois team stole Cornell’s last-ditch throw, and ended the five-game winning streak the Red complied.
December 22nd, at Loyola: Loss — 73-65
Chicago proved to be an unlucky town for the Red, as it dropped its second game in the windy city. Loyola was revenging its 76-60 season opener loss to the Red. The first half was close, with lots of outside shooting by both teams. The Red went 5-10 from downtown in the first half alone. Freshman Tanya Karcic had an eye-opening game, finishing with a double-double, twelve points and ten rebounds. Linker added 13 points and nine boards, and Walas put up another eleven points on 4-10 three-point shooting. Cornell shot 91.7% from the free-throw line, but Loyola’s second half foul shooting –13-15 from the line — sealed the victory for the home team. Cornell headed home for two weeks, ending the year 2000 at 6-4.
January 6th, at Bucknell: Loss — 74-57
The skid continued into the New Year for the Big Red. Rebounding problems hounded the team, as they were out-grabbed 43-36 in the game, 21-13 in the first half. Two Bison cagers with double-doubles allowed Bucknell to maintain a double-digit lead for most of the game. Normally a highlight, the Red’s outside game was stuffed, as it went 2-14 from beyond the arc. Linker and Stevens both hit eleven points; Davis and Walas added seven each. The Red slide hit three games, with the record at 6-5.
January 8th, hosting Stony Brook: Loss — 82-73
The defense again forgot to show up, as in the second straight game the Red allowed an opposing player to tally over 30 points. This game Sea Wolf freshman Sherry Jordan scored 31 points. Again the Red suffered from beyond the arc, and rebounding was slim. Linker amassed 17 points, Romey totaled twelve, and Stevens and Walas added eleven each. The Red hit the .500 mark, losing its fourth straight.
January 12th, hosting Princeton: Won — 77-61
The slide abruptly ended, as the Ivy season began. The Red won for the first time since December 17. Cornell’s outside game returned, and it shot better from beyond the arc than from the free-throw line, and from inside the arc. Going 9-13 from far out, the Red pulled ahead early. Five players hit threes, combining for a 69.2% rate. Hot-handed Romey nailed three, on her way to 13 points. Stevens led Red scoring with 15 points and a sole downtown shot. Linker and Force both hit two long ones and combined for 25 points. Walas added the other three and added three assists. The Red dominated the game, sending a foreboding message to its Ivy foes.
January 13th, hosting Penn: Loss — 69-66
Romey tried her best to give Cornell its second Ivy win as the Red took on the Ivy favorite Quakers. The Red was not in the game for the first nine minutes, shooting 2-13 while Penn opened on a 15-4 run. Down 27-12, Romey came out to play. She knocked two consecutive threes, and netted eleven points on the half. The second half was close, with both teams playing well, but Penn had the rebounding edge. The game was at 69-66 with a little over a minute left, but neither team could score, and Romey didn’t get a clean shot on her last-second heave. The Quakers skipped out of town with a win, and the Red fell to 1-1 in the Ivies.
January 16th, at Albany: Win — 60-46
Both teams started slow offensively, with Cornell up a dismal 23-20 at the half. The Red picked up the pace in the second half, going on a 14-2 streak. Karcic and Linker both had strong games. The freshman totaled twelve points and grabbed seven boards, and the senior hit eleven, going 5-5 from the foul stripe. Stevens led the team with 13, and Romey added another ten.
The Red survived the winter, finishing 8-7, 1-1 Ivy. The remaining part of this season is the all-important Ivy campaign. This is the time the Red has been preparing for. Cornell is off to a good start, having defeating Columbia on Saturday to boast a 2-1 record in the Ivy League. The Red faces Columbia in New York on Saturday, and try to continue its march to the Ivy title.
Archived article by Cammy Kandiko