Nashville, Tenn. ? Stetson junior center Ayesha Barkley (East Orange, NJ) scored a game-high 20 points, pulled down six rebounds and did all she could to keep her team in Wednesday's A-Sun Tournament quarterfinal game, but it wasn't enough as #7 Stetson fell to #2 Jacksonville University 61-47.
Early on in Lipscomb's Allen Arena the Hatters were feeling the tournament pressure as they could not seem to get the ball to drop. Shots were falling short and layups were rolling around the rim and out. Stetson missed 13 of its first 16 field goal attempts and the Dolphins went on a 9-0 run and pushed their lead to 17-7 with 7:54 on the clock. Six Stetson turnovers during that stretch did not help the cause.
Momentum shifted however and Stetson returned the favor with a 7-0 run to get within three after freshman Jessica Conner (Cocoa, Fla.) completed a three-point play with a free throw at 3:14. The teams traded 3-pointers as the clock ticked down and then Barkley drained a jumper at the buzzer to send the Hatters into the locker room down by just one point at 26-25. Barkley scored 12 of her 20 points in the first half.
“Ayesha was solid for us today”, said Hatters head coach Dee Romine. “We kept trying to find more ways to get her touches inside.”
The second half opened with both teams fighting hard to gain an advantage. With 14:24 on the clock Barkley buried a jumper and tied the score 35-35. At 14:09, however, Jacksonville's Virginia Gregoire (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) sank one of two free throws and gave the Dolphins a lead it would not relinquish. That point was the start of a 12-0 run that took the air out of the Hatters.
“Other than Ayesha we could not get a lot of things going offensively”, said Romine. “They were relentless defensively. They put pressure on our point guards and made it difficult to get into our sets. I give them credit.”
Following the 12-0 run the Dolphins outscored the Hatters 13-12 down the stretch and maintained a lead that never dropped below nine points.
“Their confidence started rising as the game went on and they took charge at the end of the game”, said Barkley. “I think the experience they gained in last year's tournament helped them with their poise.”
In the final regular season game this past Saturday the Hatters defeated the Dolphins 60-57 in the Edmunds Center. When asked what the difference was between that game and today's game, Romine had a response that was to-the-point.
“In the last game we made our shots”, she said.
Today Coach Romine led the Hatters on to the floor for the final time. After 15 years at the helm, and some great successes including an A-Sun Tournament championship and a trip to the NCAA's in 2004-2005, she announced her retirement last week. In an emotional post-game interview she related some of her feelings about coaching her final game for the Hatters.
“It is going to be change. It is going to be tough. But I am looking forward to not having the long bus rides, not breaking down film and the other things you don't see. I appreciate all the opportunities and all the players and coaches I have had a chance to work with. I feel very privileged to have been at Stetson.”
The Hatters will head for home tomorrow morning. It will be Romine's final “long bus ride” with the team. The Dolphins will move on to play the winner of tonight's game between #3 Gardner-Webb and #6 Campbell.
The #3 Stetson men's team will take the floor tomorrow afternoon against #6 Gardner-Webb at 2:15 p.m. (ct) in a quarterfinal game. All the action can be heard on Hatter Vision audio at www.gohatters.com with Murray Miller and Harry Arnold calling the action.
