Peter Foulke, Sports Editor
This Saturday, Jan. 28, the Wooster women’s basketball team faced off against the number one team in the NCAC, the DePauw University Tigers. The Fighting Scots were searching for their first conference win this season and their first win since Nov. 16. However, they ultimately fell short in their goal, losing to DePauw 100-43.
The Fighting Scots put up a valiant effort in the first quarter putting up 11 points and only trailing the Tigers by 10. However, after the first quarter, the Scots struggled to keep up with the Tigers. DePauw scored 11 unanswered points in the first five minutes of the second quarter. The Tigers went on to score another 25 points in the second quarter leading the Scots 53-25 at halftime.
The Tiger’s defense smothered the Scots, picking up 47 rebounds. The Tigers’ tenacious offensive rebounding led to 24 second chance points. The Scots’ careless handling of the ball resulted in 19 turnovers leading to costly scoring opportunities for DePauw. 31 of DePauw’s 100 points came off turnovers from the Scots. The Tigers’ back court also proved deadly with a team three-point average of 58% resulting in 45 points.
By the second quarter, DePauw began rotating reserves into the action with an astounding 66 of DePauw’s total points coming off the bench. The Tigers’ team high of 16 points came from reserve player, Ava Hassell ’25. Lily Huntzinger ’26 and Lydia Stullken ’24 both scored 11 points coming off the bench for DePauw. The Scots also utilized reserve players later in the game; Erica Beaty ’26 and Ella Dean ’26 racked up significant minutes coming off the bench for Wooster with 31 and 18 minutes respectively.
Notable performances came from Mia Walker ’26 and Ella Biondi ’26. Walker tallied 14 points, one assist and two blocks in 32 minutes, doubling her seven-point per game average. Forward Ella Biondi proved a defensive stalwart grabbing nine boards and two steals. Despite stellar individual play the Scots were not able to overcome a dominant DePauw team shooting 58% from the field.
First-year Earica Beaty had an impressive four rebounds and two assists coming off the bench and said, “We improved so much during that game and did a lot of things really well, they were just a tough team.”
Despite a defeat to DePauw, the Scots look forward to their next game against Wittenberg on Saturday, Jan. 31. They play at Wittenberg and will look to find their first NCAC win this season.
The Wooster Voice 