Trio of doubles-doubles lifts Wheaton to Hawaii victory, 67-59

December 20, 2007

HONOLULU, HI- Senior Becky Aitchison (Norwalk, CT/Trinity Catholic), junior Krystin Hickey (Manchester, NH/New Hampton School) and sophomore Jenny Champney (Bedford, MA/Bedford) each notched double-doubles as the Wheaton College women's basketball team downed NAIA Division II foe Briar Cliff University of Iowa, 67-59 during the Hoop N Surf Tournament on Thursday at Kilauea District Park.

The Lyons finished their two-game stint in Hawaii by improving to 5-4, while the Chargers fell to 7-8. Wheaton held a 58-38 rebounding advantage and limited its opponent to 7-of-28 shooting from beyond the arc.

The Blue and White scored the first three baskets of the contest, as consecutive Champney hoops made it 6-0 at 17:46 of the opening stanza and, after Briar Cliff trimmed its deficit to 8-6, the Lyons pulled out to their largest lead of the game, 20-9 with 9:52 to go.

From there, the Chargers put together a 15-2 run, taking their first lead at 24-22 with 3:52 left in the half on freshman Michelle Determan's (Lincoln, NE/Pius X) basket. Wheaton still trailed by two before Aitchison picked up a steal and dropped in the game-tying bucket with 1:30 to go. On the ensuing possession, sophomore Ida Kruse's (Vershire, VT/Rivendell Academy) steal led to Champney's go-ahead basket at 1:15, and the Lyons carried a 30-28 edge into the locker room.

A free throw by sophomore point guard Andrea Bailey (Needham, MA/Needham) at 12:41 of the second half made it 44-36 for the last of three early eight-point cushions, but Briar Cliff again came from behind, using an 11-0 run during a 1:57 span to go in front, 47-44 with 9:43 to go. The teams played to three ties between that point and 6:14, and junior Jamee Phipps (South Sioux City, NE/South Sioux City) canned a three with 6:07 remaining to put the Chargers on top, 55-52.

From that point until the final horn, Wheaton tallied 15 of the game's last 19 points, as Aitchison's three-pointer with 4:30 remaining put the Lyons up for good at 57-55. The Blue and White canned eight of its final 12 free throw attempts, while Briar Cliff hit only one of its final 13 field goal tries. Wheaton shot 46.2 percent from the field and 12-of-17 at the charity stripe in the second half.

Hickey, who was named to the all-tournament team, led the Lyons in scoring for the sixth consecutive game with a game-high 19 points, going over the 900-point barrier during the contest, and snagged 10 rebounds. Aitchison and Champney had 16 and 14 points, respectively, while each grabbed a game-high-tying 11 boards. The trio combined to shoot 20-of-36 from the field with 49 points and 32 boards.

Bailey turned in seven rebounds, four assists and three steals, junior Bri Smith (Westford, MA/Westford Academy) had four helpers, while classmate Jennie Pleat (Nashua, NH/Nashua South) had seven caroms and Kruse six.

Phipps hit three three-pointers and tallied 15 points, nine rebounds and four steals for the Chargers, while Determan added 11 points from the bench. Senior Kayla Boyd (Pleasant Hill, IA/Southeast Polk) finished with seven points and six steals.

The Blue and White returns to action on Thursday, January 3, as it hosts Lesley University at 6:00 p.m. in the first game of the two-day Wheaton New Year's Tournament. The second contest, between Emerson College and Trinity College, begins at 8:00 p.m.

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