JMU beats William & Mary

Carolyn Walser / senior photographer Sophomore guard Leslie Dickinson shoots over William & Mary guard Mindy Carter Sunday during JMU's 66-61 victory over the Tribe. Dickinson finished with 11 points.

After a sluggish start, the Dukes defeated the College of William & Mary 66-61 in Colonial Athletic Association conference play Sunday at the Convocation Center.

Sophomore guard Shirley McCall and sophomore center Meredith Alexis led the team with 18 points. Alexis added 17 rebounds.

Freshman forward Tamera Young set the JMU freshman steals record with 57.

Young, currently No. 7 in the CAA in points per game — averaging 14.9 per contest — left the game with 2:25 left in the first half due to back spasms.

"Tamera will be okay, she went up and came down awkwardly," JMU coach Kenny Brooks said. "We are going to be cautious with her, but the training staff will do everything they need to do."

Losing Young in the first half was not the Dukes’ only problem. William & Mary guard Kyle DeHaven posed her own threat to the Dukes. DeHaven leads the CAA in steals, and led the Tribe with 21 points.

DeHaven was close to unstoppable on Sunday.

"Coach Brooks calls her the energizer bunny, she is all over the court," McCall said. "In the second half I just tried to keep her in front of me and get a hand up on her shots."

In addition to DeHaven the Dukes created their own problem with 33 turn overs. "We came out really sloppy," Alexis said. "We weren’t expecting them to come out as hard as they did."

However, Alexis played a major role in helping the Dukes pull out the win.

"Meredith had a monster game," Brooks said.

William & Mary coach Debbie Taylor said, "Meredith stepped up big in the second half and killed us on the boards."

The turnout of Sunday’s game was much different than the result the first time the two teams met earlier this season. The Dukes previously defeated William & Mary 61-42 Dec. 3.

"The major differences today were losing Tamera and the fact that William & Mary were the agressors today," Brooks said. "Last time we played them was two and a half months ago, and we did a fantastic job defending DeHaven.

"Anytime you win it’s good regardless of the situation. Although, I was disappointed and frustrated with the effort and execution at times, everyone did an adequate job stepping it up in the end."

The Tribe led 33-32 at halftime. Despite their strong effort, they have struggled with injuries throughout the season.

"We have injuries across the board," Taylor said. "We’ve got five out for the year. Three of our starters are done, which has forced girls to play more when they might not have been ready to."

After Sunday’s game William & Mary moves to 4-18 overall and 2-11 in conference play.

The Dukes move to 14-8 overall and 7-6 in conference play and take sole possession of fourth place in the CAA.

JMU is next in action Feb. 17 at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington.

W & M 33 38 — 61
JMU 32 34 — 66

William & Mary (2-11 CAA, 4-18) — Lindsey Brizendine 9, Sarah Stroh 2, Kyle DeHaven 21, Lizze Schiel 9, Mindy Carter 3, Katy Neumer, Devin James 11, Jalen Boone 2, Maria Sazonova 4. Totals 21-70 16-18 61. 3-point goals: Schiel 2, Carter.

JMU (7-6 CAA, 14-8) — Tamera Young 5, Shirley McCall 18, Meredith Alexis 18, Andrea Benvenuto 5, Lesley Dickinson 11, Nina Uqdah, Jasmin Lawrence, Mary Beth Culbertson 5, Krystal Brooks 4. Totals 22-59 19-26. McCall 2, Culbertson.