The women’s basketball team could not muster the momentum to push past the nationally ranked DePauw University Tigers last Saturday, falling by more than 20 points with a final score of 73–52.

The opening minutes appeared promising for the Yeowomen, as junior guard Lindsey Bernhardt sunk a three-point shot to pull ahead 15–12, but the Tigers quickly replied with a 20–2 run of their own. Oberlin would claw its way back to within nine points at halftime, but the Yeowomen’s hopes for a comeback were quashed after the break.

DePauw had no mercy on Oberlin as the second half commenced. The Tigers stepped on the gas and did not look back, using a 16–1 run to put the game out of the Yeowomen’s reach. Head Coach Kerry Jenkins attributed the loss to his team’s inability to match DePauw’s intensity.

“We turned the ball over two or three times in a row followed by a few defensive breakdowns of our own, and they just do an excellent job of capitalizing on mistakes,” he said. “The lead jumped from nine to eighteen in the course of four or five possessions. Those mistakes are just deadly when you play against [DePauw].”

Bernhardt led the Yeowomen with 13 points, while senior forward Christina Marquette added seven points of her own. DePauw’s tight defense limited the Yeowomen to just .356 in shooting and forced Oberlin to commit 17 turnovers in the contest.

Marquette, who has spearheaded the Yeowomen’s offense this year by averaging 17 points per game, echoed Jenkin’s praise for the Tigers’ powerful offensive momentum.

“They’re just a team that doesn’t make mistakes while capitalizing on your mistakes,” she said. “Once you’re down, they don’t mess up enough for you to come back.”

Despite Marquette’s single-digit contribution against DePauw, the lone Oberlin senior has been a big-time contributor throughout the regular season. In averaging 8.3 rebounds per game, Marquette has grabbed the attention of the North Coast Athletic Conference, nabbing two All-Conference Player of the Week mentions in just three weeks.

Marquette led the Yeowomen past the Kenyon College Ladies last Wednesday, Jan. 28, with 20 points and 18 rebounds. The stellar performance made Marquette the second women’s basketball player in Oberlin’s history to tally 1,600 career points and puts her in a position to clinch the College’s all-time scoring record.

In reflecting on his team’s success so far, Jenkins commended the Yeowomen for their hard work and achievement.

“The season is going great,” he said. “Our chemistry is really good. We’re developing consistency and working a lot on discipline and enthusiasm. We are just continuing to work on those things, and we think we have a good model moving forward.”

On Wednesday, the Yeowomen took to the road to face the fourth-place Denison University Big Red. Prior to the game, Jenkins stressed the importance of focusing on the team’s immediate tasks.

“When you win a couple of games, it’s easy to get distracted by thinking about the what ifs,” he said. “Right now, the only thing we are focused on is Denison. We don’t get too high, we don’t get too low. If there is a problem, we fix it, and if we do something well, we keep doing it.”

With Marquette and Bernhardt leading the way, the Yeowomen pulled away with an overtime victory against the Big Red. The power duo was joined by six teammates for an all-around team effort that sent Oberlin home victorious with a score of 62–54.

The eighth NCAC win of the season for the Yeowomen ties the school record for conference wins, which was originally set by the 1998–1999 squad. Oberlin is currently 12–9 overall headed into next week’s home game against the Allegheny College Gators. With the postseason on her mind, Bernhardt has set a high bar for both herself and her teammates.

“Our team goal is that we have a home conference game in the playoffs,” said Bernhardt. “With the talent this team has, I think that we have a good chance at winning our conference.”