THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, February 27, 1995 TAG: 9502270155
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JULIE GOODRICH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines
Although they had only an eight-point lead at the half, the Old Dominion Lady Monarchs took advantage of East Carolina's generosity in the second half, outscoring the Lady Pirates, 59-30, for a 99-62 victory Sunday at the field house.
It was the most points scored by ODU since a 100-68 win over Memphis State in 1989. Against the Lady Pirates, ODU set season marks for points scored, points in the second half (59), free throws made and attempted (29 of 53), rebounds (59), and steals (27).
``The game was constantly being stopped by a whistle,'' said ODU's Ticha Penicheiro. ``It felt like we played the first half last year.''
ECU had a season-high 33 turnovers and committed 37 fouls, 29 in the second half. The Lady Monarchs made 23 of 42 attempts from the line in the second period.
ODU (22-5, 11-1) built as much as a 20-point lead in the first half, 34-14, on a 3-pointer by Misty Hart with 5:42 left before the break.
With four minutes until halftime and ECU down 37-18, the Lady Pirates cut into ODU's lead with a 9-0 run. Hart broke the scoreless drought with another trey, but ECU scored the last five points of the period to trail by eight, 40-32.
In the second half, Justine Allpress' layup brought ECU within six points on its first possession.
``We had a really good lead, and then before we knew it we were up by just eight, and they scored first to make it six,'' Penicheiro said. ``That's when we realized it was time to play.''
The Lady Monarchs extended their lead to 10 points, then outscored ECU, 22-9, over a five-minute period to take a 24-point lead, 71-47, midway through the second half. That surge was followed by a 20-7 run that gave ODU its biggest lead of the game, 91-54, with 4:39 left to play.
Down the stretch, the only question was if the Lady Monarchs would reach the century mark. Two layups by Esther Benjamin brought ODU within five, and Beth McGowan hit the last of the team's free throws at the 1:09 mark to give the Lady Monarchs a 97-62 lead.
On the next possession, Benjamin missed a jumper. McGowan had the chance to hit 100 with an off-balance 3-point attempt with 21 seconds left, but her shot banged off the rim. Kelly Bradley rebounded the miss and put back a short jumper for the final margin.
Clarisse Machanguana led ODU with 17 points. Freshman Nyree Roberts got her first start and responded with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Stacy Himes tied a career-high with 11 points, and Shonda Deberry added 12 to round out the Lady Monarchs in double figures. Deberry took an elbow to the face midway through the second half and left with a cut in her mouth that required stitches. by CNB