WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Playing its first game in 11 days, the Navy women's basketball team found itself in a competitive bout with the William & Mary Tribe on Sunday afternoon at Kaplan Arena. A 10-0 run over the final minutes of the first quarter and into the second gave the hosts a lead that they would not relinquish the rest of the way. Even in most statistical categories with the Tribe, the Mids' (0-3) effort was short-circuited by 21 turnovers and 10 William & Mary (1-2) three-pointers during the game.  
 
For the third straight contest, team captain Sophie Gatzounas (Sr., South Hadley, Mass.) led Navy in scoring as she posted 16 points on 6-11 shooting, while adding eight rebounds and five assists in 39 minutes of action. Kolbi Green (Jr., Baltimore, Md.) was the Mids' second-highest scorer with 11 points. Off the bench, freshman Kristina Donza (Jackson, N.J.) netted seven points and four rebounds.

"I thought our team competed and fought hard throughout, but we couldn't make the timely plays when we had chances to cut the lead down," remarked head coach Tim Taylor. "Hats off to William & Mary as every time we made a run they hit a big three. That was one of the differences in the game, our inability to convert our chances and their three-point shooting." 
 
Navy started out fast with six of the game's first eight points as Gatzounas, Mimi Schrader (So., Plymouth, Minn.) and Green all found themselves in the scoring column by the 8:09 mark. The host William & Mary squad buckled down defensively and held Navy to just one field goal over the next 5:51, a Gatzounas fast break layup. During that time span, the Tribe rattled off eight points to take a 10-8 lead. A basket by Sydne Watts (Fr., Canton, Ga.) at 2:18 was quickly followed by an Emma Krause three-pointer for William Mary at 2:04 and that concluded the scoring in the first period at 13-10. While they shot 50.0 percent (4-8) from the field, the Mids' effort in the first quarter was plagued by ball handling problems with eight turnovers.
 
The second stanza opened with the host Tribe scoring the first seven points to go up 20-10 before extending their hot streak out to 12-2 and a 25-12 score by 4:45. Gatzounas tried to re-invigorate the Mids' offense that was just 1-4 from the field with six turnovers over the opening six-plus minutes of the quarter. In a run of three possessions between 3:47 and 2:45, Gatzounas recorded a pair of successful free throws and a layup to draw the Mids within 11 at 27-16. That would be the margin at the half as each team made one field goal down the stretch with Green sinking Navy's basket.
 
Coming out of the halftime intermission, the Mids leaned on Watts early as the freshman scored the team's first four points. Unfortunately for the visitors, Watts' feat was answered by a pair of William & Mary three-pointers and the score advanced to 37-22 in favor of the Tribe. Navy didn't let that 15-point deficit last for long as the Mids held the Tribe scoreless for the next 2:53, while tallying six points of their own to make it 37-28 at 3:53. Green scored four of those six points via free throws, Ciera Hertelendy (Jr., Inwood, W.Va.) added the other two points with a layup. The Mids' kryptonite, the Tribe's accurate three-point marksmanship, came back as a late quarter response when William & Mary extended its lead back out to 15 points, 48-33. The Tribe shot 3-4 from the field in the final 2:41 with all three makes coming from distance.
 
Navy's put the clamps on William & Mary defensively as the visitors attempted their fourth quarter comeback. With the Tribe scoreless for the first 2:55, the Mids were able to shave seven points off their deficit as Morganne Andrews (Fr., Martinsburg, W.Va.). Hertelendy and Donza all made baskets on consecutive possessions. With the score 48-40, William & Mary scored their only points of the first five-plus minutes with a pair of free throws at 7:05. Another field goal by Donza at the 6:08 mark helped Navy get back within single-digits, 50-42. The Tribe's only successful field goal attempt of the quarter was a Sydney Wagner layup that came at 4:12. As a team, William & Mary only shot 12.5 percent (1-8) in the fourth quarter. While Navy did a good job of controlling William & Mary from the field, the Mids were unable to draw the score closer than eight points over the final 2:56 as the hosts went 8-12 from the foul line. Gatzounas buoyed Navy's final comeback attempt with seven points in that final stretch. In her collegiate debut, MiKenzie Yim-Harvin (Fr., Lexington, N.C.) made the last basket of the game to make it a 60-51 final score.
 
For the game, William & Mary outshot Navy from the field, 39 percent (19-49) to 37 percent (18-49), while both teams shot 38 percent from three-point range, though the final tally was 10 of 26 for the Tribe and three of eight for the Mids. Both teams also made 12 free throws as Navy as 12-15 for 80 percent, while William & Mary was 12-16 for 75 percent.
 
Navy held a significant 15-rebound advantage on Sunday, 40-25. The Mids' margin was aided by a 13-4 advantage on the offensive boards. Andrews led Navy's effort with 10 rebounds off of the bench. Gatzounas added eight rebounds.
 
Defensively, Navy forced William & Mary into 12 turnovers and were credited with six steals. Green notched a team-high three steals. On the opposite side of the ledger, the Mids finished with 21 turnovers on seven steals for the Tribe.

"This has been a tough stretch for our kids especially playing all of these games on the road, but we wanted to make it tough and that's why we made the schedule this way" said Taylor. "Unfortunately, we have not had a full, healthy team yet, but it is allowing our younger players to gain experience and to grow. We have to learn to minimize turnovers and finish plays on both ends to win games in the future."
 
Navy will continue non-conference action this coming week with a pair of nearby road tilts. The Mids will head to Washington, D.C. and Howard University on Wednesday before trekking north to Baltimore and Morgan State on Friday. Tip-off between the Mids and Bison is set for 5 p.m. on Wednesday.