Basketball loses to Emory, Case Western at home

The Carnegie Mellon women’s basketball team suffered a pair of setbacks this past weekend in the friendly confines of Skibo Gym. The Tartans lost 69–46 to the visiting Emory Eagles Friday and then dropped a 63–49 decision to Case Western Reserve Sunday in University Athletic Association (UAA) action. The team is now 7–17 overall, 0–13 in the UAA.
Against Emory Friday night, Carnegie Mellon was the victim of a three-point shooting barrage by the Eagles. Emory went 9–12 from beyond the arc in the first half and jumped out to a 46–23 halftime lead. Senior forward Leah Feola’s 10 first-half points led the way for the Tartans. The Eagles cooled off in the second half, and when they increased their lead to 31 points, Carnegie Mellon responded by hitting a few baskets and connecting on some free throws. The second half of play ended in the Eagles’ favor as they won by 23 points.
“The first half was a struggle especially because they were scoring a lot,” said junior forward Rachelle Roll. “Even though we might have been scoring, it [doesn’t] feel like it when the other team is scoring twice as much as you are.”
Feola finished with a season-high 19 points, junior point guard Stacie Aleski added 10, and Roll pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds. Emory shot 47.3 percent from the floor for the game while the Tartans struggled, finishing at 32.6 percent.
“The second half was a lot better as we created more offense from our defense,” Roll said. “The second half of this game was quite different from the first half. They made nine three-pointers in the first half.... That was the difference in the first half right there.”
The Tartans got down early and trailed by 10 points for the majority of the game against Case Western on Sunday. Aleski scored a game-high 20 points and dished out four assists. The Tartans got within six points at the 13:39 mark of the second half, but Case responded to push its lead back into double-digits. Feola contributed 11 points and 11 rebounds and Roll pulled down 10 rebounds in the loss.
“They’re a great three-point shooting team,” said Aleski. “Four of their girls are consistent three-point shooters.... They were hitting their outside shots — that killed us a few times. We weren’t getting our hands up in the first half.”
“Running our offense against Case was difficult because they’re constantly bumping you — getting you out of your timing, rhythm,” Roll said. “The other thing they did really well today was after we scored a couple easy buckets inside Case started to collapse on the inside, and cover well on the outside, so it was tough to get those inside shots.”
The Tartans will conclude their season Saturday as the team will host the University of Rochester. The game will be in Skibo Gym and set to start at 2 p.m.