W-b Officials Looking To Oust Geese, Pigeons

Anna Norbutt

By KEVIN KAZOKAS Times Leader Sports Correspondent
 Sunday, January 11, 2004 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1C 





WILKES-BARRE - It wasn't necessarily a fiery halftime speech by the coach
that inspired the King's College women's basketball team to step up after a
slow start Saturday afternoon. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But becoming more aggressive in the physical game and executing the
fundamentals better on defense did help the Lady Monarchs overcome a
seven-point, second-half deficit and eventually beat Kean College, 87-71, in
the championship game of the Lady Monarch Invitational at King's College. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The victory gave King's (10-2) its third consecutive Lady Monarch
Invitational title and marked the eighth time in the last nine years that the
team has won the annual event. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Led by tournament most valuable player Kristin Yeasted and her game-high 25
points, King's fought back after trailing 41-34 early in the second half. The
Lady Monarchs, who reached the championship game with an 88-50 rout of Neumann
College on Friday, uncorked a 20-1 second-half run that featured a pair of
field goals by Yeasted and a trio of three-point baskets from other shooters. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 All-tournament team selection and John Dorish Sportsmanship Award winner
Jen Wozniak tied the game at 41 with 18:39 remaining by scoring a quick inside
bucket off a pass. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jennie Orelli, also an all-tournament selection, then put King's ahead for
good with a pair of three-point baskets. Her second trey gave the Lady
Monarchs a 47-42 advantage with about 17 minutes to play. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Although the offensive explosion allowed King's to cruise the rest of the
way, several Lady Monarchs players as well as their coach attributed the
second-half success to adjustments made on defense and in the team's physical
attack. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Basically, we were kind of confused on what we were doing on defense
(during the first half),'' said Orelli, who followed up Friday's career-high
19-point effort by scoring 16 points Saturday. ``In order to get ahead of
them, we had to box out and get ahead on the defensive and offensive boards." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Lady Monarchs accomplished those tasks and also matched the Cougars'
physical style in the second half, something that King's failed to do through
the first 20 minutes. Coach Bryan Whitten said he advised his players at
halftime to step up their physical play, but to stay within the rules. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 `I said, `They're pushing us all over the place and the refs aren't calling
it. Push back.' '' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Lady Monarchs did just that. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Once we saw how the refs were calling the game and saw how we could play,
you have to step it up and play that way,'' Yeasted said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Besides double-digit efforts from Yeasted and Orelli, King's also received
16 points from Wozniak and 14 from Vienna Spitler. The team made seven of 11
three-point baskets, with Orelli contributing five. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Tahnisha Barge paced Kean (10-4) with a team-high 21 points. She and
teammate Shervon James were both all-tournament selections. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In the consolation game, Salisbury defeated Neumann, 98-75. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TIMES LEADER STAFF PHOTO/DON CAREY &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 King's College's Beth Jordan (45) drives past Kean College's Chi Clark (32)
during the Lady Monarch Invitational on Saturday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TIMES LEADER STAFF PHOTO/DON CAREY &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jen Wozniak (5) of King's College takes a hook shot over Kean University's
Shervon James (15) during the championship game of the Lady Monarch
Invitational on Saturday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

2nd-half Effort Brings King's Title