Signature Wins: For the Haverford College women's basketball team, the 2017-18 campaign was full of memorable moments as the Fords tallied 21 victories and registered a 16-4 mark in Centennial Conference play. Haverford's success against its peers at the top of the Centennial Conference came to help a solid season become a remarkable one down the stretch run.
One of the most illuminating victories of the season came on the road against eventual Centennial Conference champion Gettysburg (Jan. 9). The Bullets came into the early January contest as a previously unbeaten squad. Samantha Wetzel poured in 18 points, added seven rebounds and came down with four blocks for the Fords as a methodical 16-3 run put things away for Haverford on the road at Bream Gym. The Fords took down then-16th ranked Muhlenberg (Feb. 6), taking down a ranked opponent for the first time since 2013 with a convincing home victory at Gooding '84 Arena. First year Julianna Clark had a 13-point night for a career best in the contest, playing her part in handing the Mules their first road loss of the season.
In the Centennial Conference tournament, the Fords again faced off with Muhlenberg (Feb. 23), this time the 25th-ranked team in the nation. Wetzel again proved to be a difference maker with a standout 21-point night that also included 10 rebounds for her 11th double-double of the season. On that evening, Wetzel also joined teammate Sierra Berkel in the 1,000-point club at Haverford, becoming the eighth member of the program to reach the plateau. Berkel similarly excelled on the biggest stage of the season up to that point, with her sixth double-double of the season as the Fords turned away an experienced Mules side for the second time in a month.
Season Notes: Haverford finished the season with its second-best win total in program history for the second straight season... Haverford reached the NCAA tournament for the second time in program history, earning an at-large berth to the tournament and facing off with Christopher Newport in Ashland, Va … Berkel and Wetzel became the seventh and eighth players in program history to join the 1,000 point club, with Berkel achieving the feat on January 20 before Wetzel joined her fellow co-captain on February 23 …The Haverford defense again excelled as one of the stingiest scoring defenses in the entire country, holding opponents to just 47.5 points per game, the third-best total in all of Division III … Haverford's field-goal defense was seventh-best in the nation as the Fords held opponents to just 31.9 percent from the field … The Fords posted marks within the top-15 in the nation in fewest fouls and fewest turnovers as a unit … Samantha Wetzel was ninth in the nation in blocked shots with 86 rejections on the season … Wetzel became the Centennial Conference's all-time blocked shots leader during the Centennial Conference Championship Game, turning away four shots to pass Heidi Snyder of McDaniel as the Conference's most prolific shot defender.
Postseason Awards:
- CoSIDA Academic All-District: Samantha Wetzel
- Centennial Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Samantha Wetzel
- Centennial Conference Rookie of the Year: Julianna Clark
- All-Centennial Conference: Sierra Berkel (first team), Samantha Wetzel (second team), Macy Goldbach (honorable mention)
- Centennial Conference All-Sportsmanship Team: Katie Cook
- Centennial Conference Player of the Week: Sierra Berkel (1/9), Samantha Wetzel (1/16)
- Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll: Sierra Berkel, Anna-Sophia Capizzi, Macy Goldbach, Unique Tuberville, Samantha Wetzel, Hannah Zoll
- Ambler Scholar-Athlete: Samantha Wetzel
- Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area: Sierra Berkel, Samantha Wetzel
Looking ahead: The Fords graduate two true program cornerstones in Berkel and Wetzel. The pair of 1,000 point scorers made an indelible mark on the program both on and off the court and emerged as true forces in the Centennial Conference landscape. Haverford is in very solid position to continue its run of success, as Macy Goldbach returns from the second of back-to-back All-Conference campaigns. Fellow guard Katie Cook will be another anchor and leader in her senior season while a rising sophomore class will have a bevy of postseason experience after two full years at Haverford. Julianna Clark, the reigning conference Rookie of the Year, is sure to be a versatile threat in just her second campaign in 2018-19 while each first year member of the squad received valuable playing time in their first season of collegiate action.