The opening game in this year's NCAA Division III tournament seemed to work out perfectly for the lady Judges. Guard Jaime Capra '08 scorched the defense of their first round opponent, the Maine-Farmington Beavers, who came into the game ranked 21st in Division III. Capra posted a career high 33 points in 32 minutes, while shooting a perfect 4-4 from beyond the arc, helping the Judges cruise to a 90-66 victory.
The 17th ranked Judges were able to get off to a fast start, taking an eight point lead on a three pointer by Jessica Chapin '10. But the beginning of the game was dominated by Capra, who midway through the first half scored 14 of the Judges' first 24 points. Capra outscored the entire Beavers squad in the first half with a total of 25 points to the Beavers 23 overall.
Sometimes it just feels good. Everything I felt was going in, said Capra of her quick start. The Beavers were unable to adjust defensively and stop Capra at any point in the game. Her 33 points were just one shy of the school record.
She definitely took the wind out of our sails, said Maine- Farmington coach Jamie Beaudoin.
Capra and the Judges were both red hot from beyond the arc, going 8-13 in the first half and 10-19 on the game. Maine-Farmington on the other hand shot a mediocre 1-8 from downtown in the first half, and 6-21 for the game. In the end, the Judges superior shooting of about 57 percent from the floor was too much for the Beavers, who shot less than 34 percent overall.
Brandeis coach Carol Simon stated, I thought our defense was great. We really made an adjustment. We just got to play our game and whatever it is, it is.
With the Judges executing well on both sides of the ball, they were able to run away with the victory. To help out Capra offensively were Kiersten Holgash '08, who shot a perfect 5-5 for 12 points, Lauren Orlando '09 who added 10 more, and Alison Chase '07 who put up 9 points. Caitlin Malcolm '07 dominated the boards defensively with 11 rebounds for the Judges.
The Judges will now move on to the second round on Saturday, playing against Emmanuel University to their home crowd at the Jean Yawkey Center at Emmanuel at 7 pm.
