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BY LAUREN WALKER

In print | Published February 28, 2008

The women’s basketball team finished its season with a thrilling overtime win against rival Haverford College at home in Tarble Pavilion on Saturday, honoring their seniors with the ultimate victory, 74-65.

Haverford got a quick jump on the Swarthmore women at the start of the game, taking an early 7-0 lead. Kathryn Stockbower ’11 was the first to get the Garnet on the board, and her basket was quickly followed up by a beautiful nothing-but-net three pointer from Melissa Grigsby ’09, putting Swarthmore back in the game.

Haverford continued to maintain the lead as the half went on, but the Garnet kept them close, matching their baskets and keeping a tight margin.

With 11:30 to go in the half, Laura Popovics ‘08 brilliantly placed a behind-the-back pass into the hands of captain Pam Costello ’10 to cut the Fords’ lead to one point.

With 5:22 remaining, Grigsby put back an offensive rebound and Swarthmore took the lead 20-18. Haverford answered back hastily, however, regaining the lead and extending the gap between the teams to eight points. A last second shot from Ceylan Bodur ’11 cut the margin to five and regained momentum for the Garnet going into halftime.

After the half, the action continued as the two rival squads continued to battle it out on the court. Haverford again went on an early run, extending their lead to nine points. Kristen Traband ’08 cut off the streak, beating a Haverford defender with a powerful post move and putting two points on the board for the Garnet.

Swarthmore continued to reduce the Fords’ lead, and with 15:20 left in the half, a three-pointer from Popovics brought the Garnet to within two points of Haverford, 36-34.

The rest of the second half was a back and forth fight to the finish. Bodur tied the score at 55 a piece with 3:25 left in the game, but Haverford went up again and with two minutes to go, Swarthmore was down by four.

The Garnet women were not finished, however. Two completed foul shots from Costello and a jumper from Grigsby with 1:23 left in the game knotted the score once again, and the game was sent into overtime tied at 59.

Led by Popovics, Swarthmore took over the overtime play with a vengeance. Popovics sunk a three with three minutes to go to claim a 63-61 lead for the Garnet. Costello once again came through with two foul shots, and Stockbower contributed two points of her own to bring the team’s lead to 67-61.

Haverford tried to battle back, grabbing a basket of their own, but Popovics answered back once again with another three-pointer with less than a minute to go, and then with five seconds in the game, she made another three-point play, tallying a total of ten overtime points and leading the Garnet women to victory.

The overtime win against Haverford was a perfect finale for Senior Day. “It really meant a lot to win the last game of my athletic career with a win,” said Traband. “The fact that we won in overtime made it that much sweeter,” she said.

Captain Karen Berk ’08 agreed, saying that “clinching the win against Haverford was the best way to end the season.”

Before the start of the game, the Garnet stopped to recognize their three seniors, Popovics, Traband and Berk. Each of them has made significant contributions to the team in their time at Swarthmore, and they will be greatly missed in the future.

Coach Renee DeVarney said that all of the seniors will leave behind powerful legacies after their graduation in June.

“Traband’s spirit and leadership has left a deep impression on the team. She is an outstanding example of someone who perseveres daily, with a positive attitude, who left a very positive impression on the team. Popovics had the best year of her career. It was great to see her growth. Berk is irreplaceable. She had some amazing games in her career and her records will stand for a long time in the books. All will be sorely missed,” the coach said.

The Garnet also picked up a win at Washington College last Wednesday, 68-65. These two wins bring the Garnet’s overall season record to 8-16 overall (6-13 CC). These wins provided Swarthmore’s women’s basketball team with a solid ending, and something they hope to once again improve upon next year.

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