HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College women's basketball team used a huge third quarter to start the 2018 portion of its schedule off with a 54-40 win inside the Gooding '84 Arena on Saturday. The Fords (8-2, 5-1 CC) never trailed in their return from a 28 day layoff over the holidays, and jumped all over the Red Devils at the start of the second half as they led by as many of 24 points late in the third quarter.
Senior co-captains Samantha Wetzel and Sierra Berkel both recorded double-doubles for the Fords in the Centennial Conference win. Berkel led the charge offensively in the third quarter, scoring 13 of her game-high 20 points during that period on 5-of-6 shooting from the field while also making each of her three free throws. Berkel also finished the game 12 rebounds. Wetzel led Haverford with 13 rebounds to go along with her 14 points. She scored eight of those points in the first quarter when the Fords jumped out to a 17-9 advantage after 10 minutes of play. In addition to her defensive presence on the boards, Wetzel blocked six of Dickinson's shot attempts.
Right out of the gates, the two sides traded the first eight points of the game, but the Fords would soon claim the lead for good with an 8-1 run which held the Red Devils without a basket from the field for 5:10 of playing time. Leading 17-9 after the first quarter, Haverford matched its half-best eight point lead once in the second quarter as the Fords took a 23-16 lead into the locker room.
After a defensive battle to close the first half, Haverford kept the defensive intensity up in the third quarter and shot nearly 53% from the field to open the game up. Dickinson scored the first points of the quarter, but on the ensuing possession a layup from Wetzel keyed 14-0 run that spanned until the midpoint of the third. Nine of Berkel's points came during that span of just under four minutes, with Katie Cook also connecting from beyond the arc during that stretch.
Even when Dickinson snapped its scoreless streak, the Fords came right back with eight more unanswered points. That stretch in which the Fords outscored the Red Devils by a 22-3 margin gave Haverford its largest lead of the afternoon, a 45-21 edge with 2:37 to play in the third quarter. The closest Dickinson came the rest of the way was a 13 point deficit late in the fourth quarter before the Fords ultimately prevailed by a 54-40 score.
Haverford limited Dickinson to under 25% shooting from the field, and just 3-of-11 from beyond the arc. The hosts also forced Dickinson into 14 turnovers. Offensively, the Fords shared the ball very well with 14 assists on the team's 22 baskets. Maddie Gallic led the team with five helpers, while six different players recorded an assist in the win.
Women's basketball will have a busy week upcoming as the Fords will play three Centennial Conference games next week. The first of those contests will see Haverford travel to Gettysburg for a rematch of last year's semifinal playoff game. The start times of Tuesday's doubleheader will differ from the traditional format as the women will follow the men's game with an 8 p.m. start time. The Bullets enter Tuesday's game just one game ahead of the currently third-place Fords in the conference standings.