The women’s basketball team won two of three games over the past week to vault them to a 5-2 record for the season.

Judges 44, Johnson and Wales  37

The Judges ended their week against Johnson and Wales University on Saturday in a low-scoring win. The team managed only 44 points off  26.8 percent shooting on the day. 

Guard Paris Hodges ’17 poured in half of the team’s points with 22 points and six rebounds on the day. The rest of the Judges struggled to keep up with the pace, with no player scoring more than six points in the game. 

The Judges could not hold on to the ball, giving up 20 turnovers to Johnson and Wales’ 14. The squad was able to box out inside the paint with a whopping 58 rebounds, nearly double that of Johnson and Wales’ total. Forward Maria Jackson ’17 and forward Sydney Sodine ’17 helped control the low key with 12 and 14 rebounds, respectively. Guard Eva Hart ’18 also chipped in with a personal season-high of 10 rebounds. 

Defensively, the team excelled as usual, reducing Johnson and Wales to 26.3 percent shooting. Their stellar defense has continued to save the Judges in times of offensive struggle and has kept the team in contention. 

Despite their solid record, the Judges stand in last place in their conference, behind undefeated powerhouses New York University, Washington University and Carnegie Mellon University. 

Judges 59, Salem St. 34

The Judges’ stifling defense showed up big time on Tuesday against a struggling Salem State University team.

In the second and third quarter, the Judges allowed an unbelievable 10 points, with Salem St. scoring a mere two points in the second and eight in the third.

Guard Sarah Jaromin ’19 led the squad with  12 points in 11 minutes off the bench. Jackson helped secure the post with an impressive 13 rebounds on the day and tacked on another eight points to finish off the game.

Offensively, the Judges struggled to find their shot, with no starter scoring more than eight points on the day.

Despite the team’s recurring offensive struggles, the women were able to battle it out and come away with a win that propelled them to a 4-2 record for the season.

Judges 37, Tufts 53

The Judges managed a season-low 37 points in a disappointing loss to Tufts University. The team came out of the gate with passion, scoring 15 points in the first half versus Tufts’ 12.

The team completely fell apart in the second quarter, scoring only once in the entire quarter. The lone basket came by the hands of guard Hannah Nicholson ’20. From there the team regained their composure, but was never able to outscore the streaking Tufts team.

The game came down to offense and the box score said it all, with only one player scoring in double digits for the Judges’ squad. The Judges shot a mediocre 25 percent from the field and turned the ball over a whopping 18 times to give Tufts 18 points off turnovers.

While the Judges struggled offensively, so did Tufts, which shot 27.9 percent from the field and allowed 14 turnovers in the game.

The Judges were not able to convert at the foul line. The Judges converted only two of their 10 free throws, while Tufts poured in 16 from the stripe. Tufts was able to get the calls they needed to push them over the top and into the win column for the day, and that was what mattered.

The Judges will continue against Gordon College on Dec. 10 and will look to sharpen their offense and keep their record above .500.