Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Women’s Basketball | After Providence Win, Hoyas Fall to Villanova

JULIA HENNRIKUS/THE HOYA Freshman guard Dorothy Adomako earned her third Big East Freshman of the Week honor for helping the Hoyas to a 1-1 record over the weekend.
JULIA HENNRIKUS/THE HOYA
Freshman guard Dorothy Adomako earned her third Big East Freshman of the Week honor for helping the Hoyas to a 1-1 record over the weekend.
The Georgetown women’s basketball team (4-13, 2-3 Big East) faced a busy weekend as it hosted the Providence Friars (4-13, 1-5 Big East) on Friday and then travelled to Villanova, Pa. (9-7, 4-1 Big East) to take on the Villanova Wildcats on Sunday. The team split its two games, beating Providence to earn its second conference win before falling to Villanova in a hard-fought contest.

The Hoyas began their weekend by grinding out a tough 69-61 win against Providence. Junior forward Brittany Horne led the Blue and Gray with 18 points, including three key three-pointers, to help Georgetown pull away toward the end. Junior forward Dominique Vitalis was a force in the paint, tallying 16 points, seven rebounds, four steals and two assists.

“Aggressiveness,” Vitalis said, when asked about the key to her effective performance. “We just have to go out and be the aggressor.”

The Hoyas limited Providence senior forward Chanise Baldwin, who averages 7.2 points per game for the Friars, to only two points, but senior guard Karin Robinson proved to be a challenge for the Georgetown defense, as she scored 17 points to go along with seven rebounds and two assists.

The game had a frenzied pace throughout, as both teams committed multiple costly turnovers that led to fast breaks for the other team. Though Georgetown had 14 fast break points off of 19 Providence turnovers, the Hoyas also committed 18 turnovers of their own.

While Georgetown Head Coach Natasha Adair was not pleased with the amount of turnovers the Hoyas committed, she was pleased with the pace of the game.

“We want to play up and down the court,” Adair said. “We need to understand when we have numbers and have the advantage. We do play a faster-paced game — I don’t pull the reins back.”

Freshman guard Dorothy Adomako made her presence felt early, stealing the ball from Providence guards twice in the first 85 seconds of the game. Adomako had an impact on both ends of the court, finishing with 14 points, six rebounds, two assists and three steals. The freshman is quickly becoming an impact player and Adair refers to her as “a matchup nightmare,” alluding to her unique combination of athleticism, size and skill.

“Coming from high school, I’d definitely say the college speed is different, so I’ve been trying to work on that to get better,” Adomako said after the game.

The game was tight in the first half, as Georgetown switched in and out of a 2-3 zone while the Friars used a full-court press to try to disrupt the Hoyas’ rhythm offensively. Freshman point guard DiDi Burton was key in breaking the press and facilitating the offense, earning praise from her head coach.

“I’m glad we have DiDi. We’re confident in her, and even as a freshman she takes it upon herself to put the team on her back sometimes. She’s hard to guard and she has great court vision,” Adair said.

Down by five at the half, the Hoyas came out strong in the second half. Vitalis led the charge, scoring several clutch baskets to keep the Hoyas close. The Hoyas took a lead that they would maintain for the rest of the game when Vitalis grabbed an offensive rebound and dished it to Horne for a three-pointer to make it 58-55.

“We’re in Big East play, and Big East play is a new season, new opportunity, and we are starting to gel at the right time. You can see us finish, you can see us grinding things out, you can see the day-to-day work pay off for them,” Adair said.

The Hoyas’ momentum from their thrilling win on Friday was short lived as the Hoyas fell to Villanova 69-57 on Sunday. Junior guard Katie McCormick paced the Hoyas with 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting and had two assists and one steal as well. The team did not have a good shooting day, shooting a paltry 37.9 percent from the field. Sophomore forward Faith Woodard led the team with 11 rebounds, including four offensive boards.

While Georgetown struggled offensively, Villanova shot 46.6 percent from the field, and junior guard Katherine Coyer led the team with 14 points. Senior forward Emily Leer added 12 points, and was effective in limiting Georgetown’s Vitalis to only six points and five rebounds.

Georgetown started out strong in the first half, holding a 23-17 lead at one point. However, late in the first half, the Wildcats went on a 13-0 run to take the lead back for good at 34-27. The Hoyas went into the half trailing and struggled to come back in the second half.

Georgetown will look to get back in the win column on Friday against Xavier (11-6, 3-3 Big East) in Cincinnati, Ohio, continuing a three-game road trip for the team.

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