PRINCETON, N.J. -- For the Penn women's basketball team, the finish line is now in sight.
Last night, the Red and Blue served notice to the rest of the Ivy League that they won't stumble to the finish.
The Quakers defeated archrival Princeton, 73-62, at Jadwin Gym last night. Senior Jewel Clark had 28 points and the defense kept the Tigers off balance the entire contest.
In a game marked by poor foul shooting, Penn (16-9, 10-2 Ivy) pressured its overmatched opponents into 12 first-half turnovers and notched nine steals, including three by Clark. Penn coach Kelly Greenberg attributed the strong play defensively to a renewed aggressiveness.
"No knock on Princeton, but we're bigger, we're stronger and we're tougher," Greenberg said. "That was our game plan, to go in and be aggressive. Let's not let people who we're stronger than go against us. Let's put pressure on people, win or lose. If we're gonna lose, let's lose our way, and that's gonna be our motto the last two games."
With the victory, the Quakers can clinch the Ivy League title Friday at home against Dartmouth, the only team still capable of catching them. Even if they lose to the Big Green, the Red and Blue can still clinch at least a share of the crown if they can beat two-time defending league champion Harvard Saturday.
Still, the team has kinks to work out, such as starting off games. Last night, the Quakers again began slowly, as the Tigers (6-19, 3-9) scored six of the game's first eight points. Greenberg countered by bringing in junior Cat Makarewich as an early substitution.
Makarewich got the Red and Blue going by immediately getting a steal and hitting a three on the ensuing possession. On a team stocked with outside shooters, Makarewich can make the Quakers even more dangerous if she shoots consistently from the outside.
"The three is a very big part of my game," said Makarewich, who shot 2-of-5 from beyond the arc. "When I go in, my goal is to shoot, and tonight I got a lot of open looks. They were good shots, and [two] fell in."
Makarewich's second three bolstered the Penn lead to 29-22. Then it was junior Maria DiDonato's turn to do what she does best: come into the game and immediately hit a three. The Quakers' fifth three of the half made the score 36-22, and Penn went into the break up 40-31.
The Tigers didn't help themselves at the free-throw line, hitting just 1-of-9 before halftime, and 6-for-21 overall. Perhaps playing down to their competition, the Red and Blue also struggled from the charity stripe, making just 17 of 31.
"Thank God the game wasn't all free throws, cause it would have been the ugliest game ever," Greenberg said.
One bright spot for the Quakers last night was the play of center Jennifer Fleischer. The sophomore practiced Monday for the first time in a month-and-a-half, and it showed last night. In addition to posting seven points, 11 rebounds and three blocks, Fleischer played with a demonstrativeness on offense that hasn't been seen from her in some time, preventing Princeton from making a second-half run.
"As the season's gone on, Fleisch has really come into her own," Greenberg said. "Right now, she feels that Ivy League title right there and she's become a lot more vocal."
Clark put the game away in the second half, scoring 17 of her 28 points. She further stood out from the crowd by hitting 10-of-13 from the free-throw line, the last of which put the Quakers up 17 with less than a minute to go.
