Beavers in Italy Day 9: Undefeated!
September 03, 2015 | Women's Basketball
ALBINO, Italy – The Oregon State women's basketball team ended its Italian tour with a perfect 4-0 record, defeating Edelweiss Fassi Albino 90-40 Thursday evening in Albino, Italy.
“This was another positive experience for us tonight,” said Oregon State head coach Scott Rueck. “We had a lot of great performances today, and we had some great stretches in this game. Our young players really contribute, which was great to see. I thought our defense was strong throughout. This was another step forward for us as we continue towards the season.”
The Beavers used a big second quarter to take control of the contest, and never looked back from there. Junior Sydney Wiese led all scorers with 15 points on 4-for-4 shooting from the floor. She also tallied four assists and three rebounds. Senior Ruth Hamblin finished in double-figures with 10 points, while adding five rebounds and a block.
“Today's game was great,” Hamblin said. “They came out strong, but we responded. We tried some new things today, and I think we executed really well. We had a lot of players get good minutes and a lot of players play well.”
Freshman Katie McWilliams made her mark on the contest, going for 10 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the floor. Seniors Jamie Weisner and Deven Hunter notched nine points apiece, while junior Kolbie Orum tallied eight points. Freshman Taylor Kalmer and junior Gabriella Hanson recorded seven points each.
The teams battled close for the first few minutes, before the Beavers jumped out to an eight point lead midway through the first quarter. After holding a 20-12 lead heading into the second, Oregon State scored the first 12 points of the second period to take control. The Beavers would continue to add to their edge from there, carrying a 46-22 advantage into the intermission. Oregon State would go up 70-34 with a quarter remaining, en route to a 50-point victory.
Prior to the game, Oregon State spent the morning on a boat tour of Lake Como, which wrapped up at the famed lake town of Bellagio. Along the way, the Beavers got to see numerous sights, including the Swiss border, numerous historic villas (including the one owned by George Clooney) and the mountains surrounding the lake.
“We're really excited about what this trip has done for us in so many ways,” Rueck said. “It's been an incredible experience for us, and we are very grateful for it. The things that we've seen on this trip have been phenomenal. We've had great opportunities to grow as a team. Our players have had a great time together, and we've done some great thing on the floor.”
The Beavers will return to Corvallis tomorrow, when they fly from Milan back to Oregon.
