THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, February 13, 1995 TAG: 9502130161
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JULIE GOODRICH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
Against American University on Sunday afternoon at the field house, the rims weren't just unfriendly to Old Dominion, they were downright hostile.
The Lady Monarchs shot 23.8 percent in the first half and 31.5 percent for the game, a season low, in dispatching the Lady Eagles, 70-60, to remain undefeated in Colonial Athletic Association play.
Old Dominion extended its league winning streak to 48 games and stands atop the CAA standings at 8-0. American fell to 5-5.
It was the closest margin of victory for the Lady Monarchs in a CAA game since a 68-64 win over James Madison in the conference opener Jan. 6.
``For us to come away with a victory with as poorly as we shot the ball says a lot for our defense,'' ODU coach Wendy Larry said. ``I couldn't have asked for a better effort on the glass.''
Tiffany Turner's 3-pointer put American (11-10) ahead, 6-4, early and began a tug of war between the two teams, marking the start of 12 ties or lead changes until the score was deadlocked at 19 with three minutes left in the half.
On the Lady Monarchs' next possession, Clarisse Machanguana hit a free throw after being fouled on a layup to give ODU a three-point lead, but American's Kirsten Keller answered with a three-point play of her own to knot the score at 22.
ODU closed out the half with a layup by Nyree Roberts and a 3-pointer by Amber Eller to lead by five, 27-22.
The Lady Monarchs (19-4) hit just 1 of 10 3-pointers in the first half and shot 43 percent (6 of 14) from the free-throw line. But the team made up for its cold shooting with a hot performance on the glass, grabbing 20 offensive rebounds. ODU had 28 offensive rebounds for the game, a season high.
In the second half, the Lady Monarchs opened up a nine-point lead early and kept shooting, steadily increasing their lead to a game-high 22 points, 60-38, with 6:25 left to play on a Machanguana layup. The Lady Eagles cut the lead to single digits in the waning minutes of the game but got no closer than eight points.
``They were a much better team this time,'' said Roberts, who scored 10 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds. ``They gave us a run for our money.'' ODU defeated the Lady Eagles by 27 points in the teams' first meeting.
Machanguana led all scorers Sunday with 15 points. Stacy Himes also scored 10 points, hitting 8 of 11 free-throw attempts.
American's Keller, a fifth-year senior who has had reconstructive surgery on both knees during her time at American, scored the 1,000th point of her career on the second of two free throws in the first half that tied the game at 15. and Keller was given the game ball and got a standing ovation from the crowd of 1,426. ILLUSTRATION: RICHARD L. DUNSTON/Staff
Old Dominion's Nyree Roberts, right, worked for her 10 points and
team-high eight rebounds.
by CNB