BEREA — Baldwin Wallace coach Cheri Harrer had a simple game plan for her Yellow Jackets in Friday’s opening-round game against D’Youville (N.Y.) in the NCAA Division III Tournament.
And following B-W’s 83-53 rout of the Lady Spartans, it’s safe to say it was mission accomplished.
The win advances B-W (27-2) to the second round where it will face the No. 1-ranked Hope Flying Dutch tonight at 7 in B’W's Rudolph Ursprung Gymnasium.
The Flying Dutch (28-0) pounded the Juniata Eagles (18-10) 76-46 in the opening game Friday night.
Harrer wanted her team to play tough defense, rebound the ball on both ends of the floor and take care of the basketball. Afterward, Harrer was more than pleased with her team’s performance.
"This is a good win," Harrer said. "We had only six turnovers, that’s a school record. We did a good job on the boards (41-27) and just played tremendous defense. I thought out girls really came to play tonight."
Although D’Youville (22-6) got on the board first, B-W seized control of the game early. Rachel Quiring put B-W into the lead with a 3-pointer and added five more, including another three, to run the Yellow Jackets’ lead to 8-2.
"This is the NCAA Tournament," said Quiring, who finished with 12 points. "Coming out strong like we did, we set the tone on how this game was going to be played.
"We couldn’t have asked for a better start."
B-W wasn’t done, reeling off nine more points, including a jumper by reserve Sasha Samara, an Amherst graduate, that pushed the lead to 17-2.
"Coming off the bench is important," said Samara, who finished with six points. "Being part of the first group into the game means you have to keep up the intensity that the starters had. We did that tonight."
D’Youville made a run to pull to within 21-11 with 9:25 left in the half but B-W answered in a big way.
A 3-pointer by Courtney Ritzler started a 15-2 B-W run that effectively sealed the win for the Yellow Jackets. Ritzler, who led all scorers with 17 points, was able to pick her shots as the Yellow Jackets worked the ball around to the open player consistently on offense.
"Against a zone, it’s a lot easier to get the open looks outside," said Ritzler. "We were able to spot up and take out shots as we got them. Nothing had to be forced and we hit them pretty good."
B-W led 47-21 at the intermission and maintained control in the second half to advance.
B-W was so effective that nobody logged more than 20 minutes of playing time, which might have been the most satisfying aspect of the win for Harrer.
"That is absolutely huge," Harrer said. "Nobody played more than 20 minutes tonight and that’s important when you have to go back-to-back."
D’Youville, which was making its first appearance in the tournament, heads back to New York with a loss but also with something to build on.
"When we went up 2-0, I was ready to take a picture," said D’Youville coach Mark Herr. "This was a learning experience for us. They (B-W) were bigger, stronger and more physical than we were."

Baldwin-Wallace 83, D’Youville (N.Y.) 53

D’YOUVILLE: Rachel Placito 5-15 4-4 16; Angel Clark 7-14 0-0 15; Melissa Kanalley 2-4 3-6 9; Holly Beats 3-6 1-1 7; Christine Halter 2-3 0-0 4; Jonisha Scott 1-4 0-0 2; Angela Rossi 0-0 0-0 0; Susanne Wieliczki 0-1 0-0 0; Ellen Remillard
0-0 0-0 0; Jennifer Carpenter 0-0 0-0 0; Stephanie Schmieg 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-47 8-11 53.
BALDWIN-WALLACE: Courtney Ritzler 7-11 1-1 17; Rachael Quiring 5-7 0-0 12; Selena E-Budge 5-8 0-0 10; Ariel Brough 4-7 1-2 9; Amanda Mondrach 3-4 0-1 7; Jessica Butzer 3-4 0-0 6; Sasha Samara 2-4 2-3 6; Serena Farage 2-4 2-4 6; Jessica Diaz 1-2 0-0 3; Amanda Schroeder 1-8 0-0 3; Carly Flowers 1-6 0-0 2; Paige Watson 1-2 0-0 2; Addie Mental 0-2 0-0 0; Carrie Ritzler 0-1 0-0 0; Stacia Shrider 0-1
0-0 0. Totals 35-71 6-11 83.
Halftime: B-W 47-21. Three-point goals: D’Youville (N.Y.) 5-15 (Rachel Placito 2-8; Melissa Kanalley 2-2; Angel Clark 1-4; Jonisha Scott 0-1), Baldwin-Wallace 7-17 (Courtney Ritzler 2-5; Rachael Quiring 2-2; Jessica Diaz 1-1; Amanda Schroeder 1-4; Amanda Mondrach 1-2; Addie Mental 0-2; Carrie Ritzler 0-1). Rebounds: D’Youville 27 (Holly Beats 5; Rachel Placito 5), Baldwin-Wallace 41 (Ariel Brough 8). Assists: D’Youville (N.Y.) 7 (Rachel Placito 3), Baldwin-Wallace
21 (Stacia Shrider 3; Amanda Schroeder 3; Selena E-Budge 3). Total fouls: D’Youville (N.Y.) 13, Baldwin-Wallace 10. Fouled out: None. Technical fouls: None. A: 812

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