The Jackets’ women’s basketball team continued with its ACC regular season schedule with a pair of games against two tough conference opponents. The team beat Wake Forest, 71-67 at home on Thursday, Jan. 12, and followed that up with a big road win on Sunday, Jan. 15, against Boston College, winning 68-58.
The Jackets tipped off against the Demon Deacons at the Arena at Gwinnett Jan. 12 in what turned out to be a close game. The first half saw the Jackets shoot 47 percent from the floor, including 20 percent from beyond the arc.
Though Wake led by as much as four in the first half, the lead would be short lived as Tech played excellent defense, recording nine blocks for the game.
As the second half got under way, Tech opened up a ten point lead, led by sophomore guard Tyaunna Marshall.
Marshall recorded a solid double-double, scoring 20 points on 7 of 13 shooting to go with 12 rebounds. She also added two assists and three steals to the stat line. Senior center Sasha Goodlett tacked on 19 points, but struggled from the field, shooting just six for 18 from the floor. Goodlett made up for her poor shooting by adding three blocks, two assists and a steal to help Tech’s team effort.
No other Tech player was in double figures for points, but senior center LaQuananisha Adams recorded three blocks of her own and sophomore guard Dawn Maye distributed the ball effectively with six assists, six points, and three steals. Though Wake fought back to close the gap at the end of the game, Tech held off the push despite not scoring a field goal in the final 2:08 of the second half.
Tech’s second contest of the week saw the team travel to Chesnutt Hill, Mass. to take on the Eagles of Boston College. The first half turned out to be a back-and-forth affair, with each team drawing out two separate leads and playing to two ties.
One advantage Tech had was in points in the paint, where the Jackets outscored the Eagles 18 to six. Tech also ran the floor well in the first half, scoring six fast break points, to Boston College’s two.
Goodlett had a game high 26 points to go along with 16 rebounds, a block, and a steal. Tech shot 37 percent from the floor in the first half but capitalized at the foul line, shooting 80 percent.
Marshall also had another strong showing, posting her second consecutive double-double. The sophomore from Maryland posted 15 points and ten boards and added four assists in 34 minutes. Another bright spot for the Jackets was senior point guard Metra Walthour, who added 14 points while shooting 33 percent from downtown. Walthour also chipped in three assists to the team’s total of 13 for the game.
The second half would be all Jackets, as the team opened up a 14 point lead early and never looked back. Fundamentally the team played very well, outscoring the Eagles in points off turnovers and second chance points. The Jackets stepped up their defense as well, holding Boston College without a field goal for the final 5:07 of the game. Tech also limited their turnovers, recording just nine for the game while forcing Boston College to commit 13.
With the two wins Tech improves to 14-5 overall and 4-2 in the ACC. The Jacket’s next game will be Sunday, Jan. 22, as the team heads to Tallahassee, Fla. to take on Florida State. The game tips off at 2:00 p.m.