Another Top 10 falls as Williams earns huge win in Florida
The string of upsets continued in Florida yesterday afternoon, with several favorites taking neutral court losses, adding to what has been a week of numerous results that will play into NCAA Tournament projections and Top 25 ballots. It’s hard to remember the last time three different Top 10 opponents took losses in the span of just three days, and my next Top 25 (released Monday) will look pretty different as a result.
Here’s a look at some of the big headlines from yesterday, along with some additional notes from around the nation, and a few games I’ll be keeping an eye on as today unfolds.
Williams, 58, Gettysburg, 54
Fantastic finish lifts Williams to win over Gettysburg
» For the third straight afternoon, a Top 10 team took a loss to an unranked opponent in a neutral court matchup. On Wednesday, it was ETBU upsetting No. 2 Wartburg. Thursday saw Rhode Island College take down No. 10 Ohio Wesleyan. And yesterday, Williams handed Gettysburg its first loss of the season in a back-and-forth contest in Miami Shores, Florida.
» The final 3 minutes really determined the outcome in a game that had 19 lead changes, including two in the final 2:45. Gettysburg went up 54-52 on Emily Violante’s free throws, but the Bullets were held scoreless until the final buzzer, as Williams closed on a 6-0 run.
» While Arianna Gerig highlighted Williams’ big win with 27 points—her fourth 20-point performance of the year—it was Micah Walton who scored on consecutive possessions for the Ephs, tying the score at 54 before putting Williams ahead for good on a jumper just seven seconds after she tallied a steal on the defensive end.
» The final stats were fairly even, though free throw shooting stood out: Williams went 14-of-14 at the line while Gettysburg was 11-of-14. That difference of three, considering both had the same number of opportunities, proved to be especially important in an eventual four-point game.
Lawrence, 58, DePauw, 57
Lawrence pulls off big upset in Florida
» Lawrence was given just a 5% chance to win on Friday, per the daily projections from D3Datacast.com. Yet the Vikings stunned just about everyone at the Daytona Beach Shootout, most notably DePauw, by finding a way to pull off the upset.
» DePauw, ranked No. 21 in Scott Peterson’s Current Season Results Model, led 32-28 at the half, but a 17-10 third quarter from Lawrence put the Vikings right in it down the stretch. With 1:03 left, Mallory Meyer, a senior in her 82nd collegiate start, scored through contact on a layup, putting Lawrence up, 55-54. She was fouled on the play, and made the free throw that followed, pulling the momentum in the Vikings’ favor. DePauw missed three straight shots, and though the Tigers had a chance to tie it at the end, missed a game-tying 3 with five seconds left.
» Turnovers hurt DePauw, as they have in several losses this season. The Tigers turned the ball over 16 times, leading to 17 points for Lawrence. Conversely, Lawrence had just 11 turnovers, and those translated into just 10 points for the Tigers.
» Incredibly, Lawrence won the game despite being overpowered on the boards, out-rebounded 45-32. That included a 15-2 margin on the offensive glass, and the Vikings did not score on a single second-chance opportunity, a stark contrast from DePauw’s 13 second-chance points.
Lynchburg, 68, Webster, 55
Lynchburg snaps Webster’s 33-game regular season win streak
» Instead Welch College’s gym in Gallatin, TN on Friday evening, Lynchburg’s Audra Petty stepped up and hit 3, scoring her first points of the day. Less than five minutes had elapsed, but once Petty’s shot fell through, Lynchburg’s lead withstood until the final buzzer. Petty finished with 19 points as the Hornets pulled out their biggest win of the season thus far.
» The victory snapped a lengthy regular season win streak of 33 games for Webster, who hadn’t lost outside of the NCAA Tournament since the 2022-23 season. The Gorloks’ last loss came to Westminster on Feb. 18, 2023….671 days prior.
» Lynchburg turned it over 21 times, but made up for that by capitalizing on Webster’s miscues. The Hornets put up 20 points on their 15 takeaways, while Webster managed just 12 points off Lynchburg’s 21 turnovers.
» Olivia Harris had a stellar day for Lynchburg, with 24 points and 11 rebounds. The senior guard tied her career-high in scoring and tallied her second double-digit rebounding performance of the season.
Around the Nation
UW-Oshkosh continues to really impress me. The Titans were terrific against Augustana last night, winning 77-52. That included 19 second-chance points, a double-double from Kayce Vaile, and a super-efficient 6-of-7 (including 4/5 3pt) shooting performance from Alex Rondorf. I think Rondorf might just be one of the most impactful transfers in Division III this season, with what she’s given UWO on both ends of the floor so far.
St. Norbert pulled off an upset of its own, taking down Carroll, 69-65. SNC had a 16% chance of winning and trailed by 7 at the half, but overcame that in a 22-10 third quarter. We’ll need to keep an eye on SNC as a challenger in that NACC race. Yesterday marked the first time in the last six meetings that SNC has beaten Carroll, with their last win coming in 2017-18.
George Fox scored a season-low, yet the defense stepped up in a huge way, as the Bruins beat UC-Santa Cruz, 47-45. That defensive effort was best seen late in the fourth, when GFU held UCSC scoreless for the final 2:57, allowing the Bruins to close on a 5-0 run and win by 2. Tara Urshiro provided the go-ahead points at the FT line with 16 seconds left.
Today’s Most Impactful Games (all times ET)
Marietta at Otterbein, 1:00 p.m.
Northwestern (MN) at UW-Oshkosh, 3:00 p.m.
Willamette at Centre, 6:15 p.m.