Womens Basketball: Hokies deal Irish a close road loss
By KATIE McVOY
Associate Sports Editor
It was too close to call until the last second ticked off the clock. Fourteen ties and 12 lead changes highlighted the back and forth game between Notre Dame and Virginia Tech Sunday that left the question who would come out on top.
With only 34 seconds remaining and the Irish down by two, Irish guard Alicia Ratay made two free throws to tie the score at 50. But it wasn't quite enough to make the Irish winning streak any longer than two.
After a solid second-half performance against Georgetown Wednesday, the Irish (13-8, 5-5 in the Big East) found themselves back on the losing end of the court, as they fell 53-50 at Virginia Tech (15-5, 7-3 in the Big East) Sunday.
After the two Ratay baskets from the charity stripe, it looked like Notre Dame might have been able to piece together a three-game winning streak. But Hokies guard Carrie Mason converted a three-point play with 13 seconds left and the Irish couldn't respond, despite a final effort by forward Jacqueline Batteast to make a trey with just two ticks left on the clock.
Sunday's game was a battle to the finish line.
Neither the Irish nor the Hokies led by more than four points at any time. Spurts that put the Irish up by four fell short in carrying momentum through the rest of the game. And with only two players in double digits, Notre Dame could not sustain any significant scoring run.
Neither the Irish nor the Hokies could claim that it was their shooting that kept them in Sunday's contest. Only two Irish players finished the game in double figures and, while Notre Dame shot a below-average 38.6 percent from the field, the Hokies shot a dismal 28.6 percent. Notre Dame did manage to dominate Virginia Tech inside, outscoring the Hokies 24-4 in the paint, but the Irish just couldn't get the job done.
The Hokies found their only offensive success on the foul line. Virginia Tech hit 22 of its 24 free throws, recording a new team-best 91.7 percent from the free-throw line in Big East play. Hokies junior forward Ieva Kublina was a perfect 11-for-11 from the charity stripe, on her way to leading the team with 21 points.
Mason and teammate Chrystal Starling also hit double figures for Virginia Tech, recording 11 and 16 points respectively.
After recording its first positive assist-to-turnover ratio in several games against Georgetown, the Irish fell back into mid-season woes with 21 turnovers and only 10 assists. Although they out-rebounded the Hokies by three, the Irish still struggled to shut off their opponent's ability to make second chance points.
Batteast led the Irish with 13 points while forward Katy Flecky added 11.
The loss marks the fifth Big East loss for the Irish and the seventh Big East victory for the Hokies. Sunday's game was an important one for both teams as the second half of the season gets under way and they vie for good position in the Big East tournament.
Notre Dame will have three days off before facing St. John's Wednesday at home.
All Sports Stories for Monday, February 10, 2003
