Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Colgate
Bucknell Women's Basketball Steals 76-66 Overtime Win at Colgate
1/22/2011 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 22, 2011
HAMILTON, N.Y. - Bucknell women's basketball took a 13-point deficit in the first half and turned it into a 76-66 overtime victory over Colgate at Cotterell Court on Saturday afternoon. Shelby Romine (Centreville, Va./Westfield) led all players with 28 points, a school-record 19 of which came from the free throw line, and seven assists. Joyce Novacek (Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell) also finished with a double-double on 13 points and 10 rebounds, helping the Bison (5-12, 2-3) to their second straight win on the road.
Twenty of Romine's career-high 28 points came after halftime. Remarkably, the freshman was just 4 of 9 from the field and 1-for-1 from behind the 3-point arc. The bulk of the points came at the free throw line where she closed out the day at a 19-for-21 clip, including 9-for-9 in overtime.
The previous school record for free throws made in a game was 18, set by Molly Creamer against Navy on March 7, 2003. Romine fell one short of the team record for attempts in a game, as Creamer and Ann Kirwin both had 22 in a game.
The team cleared a major hurdle with win as well. After going without a win on the road for nearly a year, Bucknell has now won each of its last two away from Sojka Pavilion. The 57-49 win over Lafayette in Easton, Pa., last Wednesday, paired with today's victory in Hamilton marks the first time the Bison have won back-to-back road games since non-conference play in 2008-09.
Bucknell all-around effort in overtime proved to be one of its finest of the season. The Bison outscored the Raiders (6-12, 1-4) 17-7 in the extra period. Bucknell shot just 1-for-2 from the field, but was 12-for-13 from the free throw line, making up the bulk of their scoring. Colgate, however, was 2 of 13 from the field and 2 of 4 from the line, sending them to the loss.
After Romine's nine points from the free throw line, Cosima Higham (Brooklyn, N.Y./Poly Prep Country Day) had five points for Bucknell in overtime. The senior banked in a 3-point shot, the first of her career with 2:39 to play, then added a pair of free throws with :01 left on the clock.
Defensively, Bucknell held Colgate scoreless in overtime for more than four minutes. Catherine Lewis hit a 3-pointer with :43 seconds remaining, but the Bison were still up 68-62. By the final buzzer, that lead had extended to 10 points, the largest margin of victory for Bucknell this season.
The second half saw much more back-and-forth than the first, and Bucknell ended up finally making some headway against Colgate. After flirting off and on with a two-point deficit, Romine gave the Bison their first look at a lead of the afternoon. The freshman was fouled on a 3-point attempt in the left corner. The shot was no good, but Romine swished all three foul shots, knotting up the score at 38 with just over 13 minutes to play.
An extended injury timeout for Colgate did little to slow Bucknell's progress. Taylor Phillips (South Parkersburg, W. Va./Parkersburg South) gave the Bison their first lead of the game with a 3-pointer at 11:31. The advantage grew to 44-40 as Novacek converted a three-point play after being fouled on a made layup.
Colgate came within a single point of re-tying the game more than once, including at 46-45 as Krista Moser recorded a layup that ended the Raiders' eight-minute stretch without a field goal. The advantage seemed to spark some outside shooting for Bucknell, however, and Colgate did not pull in front. Phillips hit her second three of the game, and Romine got in the act with her own 3-point shot that put the Bison up 54-47 with less than seven minutes to go.
Three-point shooting turned things around for Colgate as well. Catherine Lewis, who did not play a minute in the first half, entered the game and drained back-to-back shots from behind the arc. That erased Bucknell's lead completely and tied the game at 56 apiece with 1:53 remaining in the game.
No long distance shot proved as big as Sami Kozlowski's at the buzzer at the end of regulation. The guard hit an off-balance 3-pointer as time expired to send the game into overtime tied at 59-59.
Saturday's excitement did not begin early as the Raiders kicked things looking like they were in complete control and wasted little time in making its mark on the scoreboard. Tayler Wejnert knocked down back-to-back threes to kick start the Raiders' offense, forcing the Bison into a quick timeout. The stoppage did little to help, however. Before Bucknell could really react, Colgate had opened the contest with an 18-6 run.
By the time the teams reached the media timeout at 11:54, the Raiders were shooting 62 percent from the field, compared to just 30 percent for the Bison. Colgate eventually started to cool off a bit, and Bucknell held its opponent scoreless for more than four minutes through the middle of the period.
Despite the defensive effort, Bucknell's offense did not pick up enough to pull in front. The Bison earned a 12-4 run that include buckets from five different players. With 3:33 remaining in the half, a jumper from Felicia Mgbada (Edison, N.J./Blair Academy) brought Bucknell within five at 25-20.
Bucknell could get no closer before the break despite getting back-to-back scores from Christina Chukwuedo (Monessen, Pa./Monessen) and Mgbada just before the half. The teams headed into the locker room with Colgate in front 51-26.
Colgate's lead came on 48.1 percent (13-for-27) shooting, while Bucknell's increased scoring helped its field goal percentage, brining it to 47.6 percent (10-for-21) through the first 20 minutes.
Novacek's double-double is the 12th of her career and her third straight against Colgate. Joining her and Romine in double-figure scoring was Mgbada with 10 points. Higham ended the day with eight points and nine rebounds, while Romine led in assists with seven, tying the career high she set earlier in the week at Lafayette.
At the end of the day, Bucknell was 21 of 50 from the field, good for a 42.0 percentage. The Bison were also 30 of 35 from the free throw line, giving them a season-best 85.7 percent success rate.
For Colgate, Wejnert finished with 17 points. No Raider had more than five rebounds as Bucknell won the battle of the boards, 40-31.
Bucknell will be back in action on Wednesday, Jan. 26 when it hosts Lehigh at 7 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion. Head coach Kathy Fedorjaka will be recognized prior to the game for winning her 200th game at Bucknell.
