THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 19, 1995 TAG: 9502190214
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C8 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JULIE GOODRICH, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 47 lines
The first time Old Dominion faced James Madison this season, the Lady Monarchs escaped with a narrow 68-64 home victory early in January.
Since then, both teams have dominated their Colonial Athletic Association opponents. ODU has won its conference games by an average of 23 points, the Dukes by 22 points. Matchup for matchup, the teams are each other's only real challenge in the league.
So something has to give today when the Lady Monarchs travel to James Madison for a 2 p.m. showdown.
``It's apparent that their results and our results in the conference have been comparable, and that's led to a lot of anticipation for this game,'' James Madison coach Sheila Moorman said.
The Lady Monarchs are atop the CAA with a 9-0 record and have won 49 straight conference games. The Dukes are 9-1, with their only loss coming at the hands of ODU.
``Lots of things potentially make this game exciting - the standings, ODU's winning streak, and the fact that the first game was so close,'' Moorman said.
One matchup in particular Moorman is looking forward to is at point guard, where Holly Rilinger will face ODU's Ticha Penicheiro. Penicheiro leads the league in assists and steals. Rilinger is second in both categories, but has shot for a better percentage than Penicheiro.
In their first meeting, Rilinger was slowed by an ankle injury. In today's rematch, it is Penicheiro who is less than 100 percent after suffering a bruised lower back against Richmond on Thursday.
Today, it's Madison's turn to have the crowd on its side.
``They (JMU) were the preseason favorites to win the conference,'' said ODU coach Wendy Larry. ``I'm sure they feel like they need to take care of business at home.''
ODDS & ENDS: Sarah Willyerd scored a career-high 19 points against Richmond. . . . William and Mary has been kind to CAA coaches this year. Larry recently recorded career victory No. 200 with a 77-36 decision over the Tribe on Feb. 5. American's Jeff Thatcher reached that milestone at W&M five days later. Moorman notched her 250th career victory with a 64-47 win over the Tribe Jan. 19. by CNB