True Grit: Women’s Basketball fights through off-court issues to claim first NESCAC win in three years

Guard Jeanna Dunleavy '13 drives the lane against Tufts. Photo from Web.

On Saturday, women’s basketball defeated Wesleyan 49-42 at home, securing the Camels’ first NESCAC victory since the 2007-2008 season. Such an accomplishment is something to celebrate no matter the circumstances, but considering the kind of season—let alone the kind of month—women’s basketball has been having, the win over Wesleyan was a well-deserved storybook ending.

It’s been a crazy winter for all of us here in New England. Snowstorm after snowstorm has definitely made this winter one to remember. But women’s basketball no doubt has had the craziest winter of all. In a little less than a month, the Lady Camels have been on top (a four game win-streak at the beginning of January), at the bottom (a seven game losing-streak from January 14-29), at rock bottom (six-game suspensions for four players, ending each athlete’s season) and back up again (two straight wins, including the team’s first NESCAC victory since the ’07-’08 season). The only thing missing was a Charlie Sheen cameo.

After starting off the month of January so well with consecutive victories against New York City College of Technology, NYU, Eastern Nazarene College and Johnson & Wales, by the 22nd the Camels had officially slipped on the NESCAC ice. Conn had lost four games in a row—all to conference opponents—and although the team was playing well, the lack of success in league was growing more and more frustrating by the day.

The Lady Camels had not won a conference game since beating Middlebury 68-58 on February 18, 2008. They had gone 0-9 in the NESCAC the last two seasons and started this one 0-4. Something had to give, they had to catch a break, or it was all going to crumble into a wintry mess of disappointment.

And that’s when four players, including the team’s top two scorers, were suspended for the rest of the season for possession of marijuana. The athletes were banned even from attending practices or watching games from the bench with their teammates. With six games remaining, five of which were against conference opponents, it seemed as though all hope was lost.

The team was devastated. Without two of their best players, another winless conference record was looming in the future. The junior class, which had come into Conn two years ago hopeful and excited for Camel basketball, had never seen a NESCAC win. They couldn’t bear another last place finish or another season with a zero in the win column. Three years of hard work was coming to nothing.

But the team picked itself up and banded together. Athletes who had once been role players began stepping up again. Against Bates on January 29, Tori Verrengia ’11 scored a career high 21 points and Kim Horne ’12 added 16 points and 8 rebounds. On the season, Verrengia is averaging 4.5 points per game and Horne is averaging 5.4 points and 4 rebounds per game.

But stepping up did not always mean racking up numbers on the stat sheet.

“Everyone has been stepping up in different ways,” Horne said. “‘Everyone steps up’ doesn’t mean you’re suddenly scoring ten points more than you usually score…People are talking more and stepping outside of their comfort [zones].”
And so going into their game against Wesleyan, Conn—despite having only nine players on the roster—was very confident. Verrengia, the only senior on the team, even guaranteed a win.

“We’re getting a ‘W,’” Verrengia said before the game. “It’s going to be our first NESCAC win in three years…We will win Saturday by ten points.”

Conn won by seven, 49-42, but who’s counting?

The victory over Wesleyan is the most satisfying win the Camels have experienced in a long, long time. More than just ending their NESCAC losing streak, the win was a statement not only to the NESCAC community, but also to the ladies themselves. It proves that the Camels can compete in this league, even shorthanded, and that their hard work is finally beginning to pay off.

“[The win against Wesleyan] was a feeling that was much overdue,” said Horne. “It’s nice to change people’s opinions. I’m sick of no one expecting us to win any games. It felt good for all our hard work to finally pay off.”

More importantly, the experience of fighting through adversity and still finding success will be something the team can look back on when they face difficulties in the future. The drama of this January allowed the younger players on the team to mature and develop as collegiate athletes very quickly. It’s hard not to see this win as a defining moment in the team’s history and as a potential turning point for the program’s success.

After the win against Wesleyan, “I foresee this [success] continuing into the future,” said Horne. And not just next season, but next weekend, too.

“Next weekend [against Bowdoin and Colby] is just as important of a weekend,” said Horne. “We have to get one of those games.”

The Camels take on Bowdoin on Friday at 8 PM and Colby on Saturday at 4 PM in the Luce Field House. They will be the team’s final two games of the season unless the Camels win both, and, with a little luck, manage to make the NESCAC Tournament.