WINTER PARK, Fla. (February 4, 2023) - It was a thriller to open up the action on Saturday, but Rollins fell just short in overtime against the Barry Buccaneers. The loss moves Rollins to 8-13 on the year and 3-11 in the SSC. Barry moves to 13-9, 8-6 SSC.
Neither team could miss in the first quarter as they both converted more than 45 % of their shots. In addition, the lead changed hands eleven times in the first ten minutes.
Erin Leigh provided a spark early on, scoring the first points of the game for Rollins, and then assisting on their next two makes. With Barry leading 16-12,
Claire Erickson,
Emily Dogbatse, and
Aaliyah Irizarry-Perez led a 6-0 Tar run to reclaim the lead. The Bucs hit their final two shots of the quarter to hang on for a 24-20 advantage after one.
The Barry lead grew as high as nine in the second quarter, but Rollins quickly came back thanks to threes from
Kymora Westerfield and Dogbatse. Unfortunately, the Tars failed to score again after the Dogbatse three, and they trailed 41-31 at the half.
In the third quarter, Rollins played solid defense, limiting the Bucs to just three made field goals in the first six minutes of play. Meanwhile, the Tar offense went to work with threes from Westerfield and
Lucy Leen, as well as four more makes from the painted area. At the 1:51 mark, an Erickson layup off a Dogbatse feed gave Rollins a 50-49 lead. Westerfield would add one more triple to her ledger in the final minute, leading to a 53-all tie through three quarters.
Again, the Tars defense gave the team ample opportunity to take control of the game. In the first six minutes of the fourth quarter, Barry managed only one made field goal. Rollins was able to take advantage of the opportunity and gain a lead of 60-55 on a Leen four-point play with five minutes to play. Leigh then stepped up in the waning moments, cashing a jumper with two minutes to go, and then nailing a pair of free throws with 35 seconds to go to put Rollins up 64-61. On the ensuing Buccaneer possession, they knocked down one of two free throws, but snagged an offensive rebound and put the ball back in to knot the score at 64. Rollins then took a two point lead with only two seconds to play when Irizarry-Perez nailed both of her free throws. Barry called timeout, and drew up a perfect play that allowed Camilla Flefil a chance to convert a 12-foot floater off the glass at the buzzer to send the game to overtime.
Each team scored on their first two possessions of overtime as the tension grew in Warden Arena. Westerfield hit a pair of free throws to Rollins up 72-71 with 2:24 to play, but Barry would score the next four points to take a 75-72 lead. Erickson was fouled on the Tars' next possession, but only converted one of three free throws. After Barry knocked down one more freebie, a last second heave from Leen hit the backboard and rim, but did not fall, and the Bucs walked away with a 76-73 win.
Westerfield led the Tars in scoring with 16 points while adding three assists. Erickson added eleven, while Leen chipped in ten.
Rollins will take on the Florida Southern Mocs in Lakeland on Wednesday, February 8. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 pm.
