It has been a rough start to the season for senior Spencer Robles. Maybe Wednesday's performance was just the remedy for whatever ailed the sharp-shooting guard.
After scoring 20 points total over the first four games, Robles (Clyde, OH/Clyde) finished with a season-high 18 points to help Wilmington open Ohio Athletic Conference play with a 61-52 victory over Capital at Fred Raizk Arena in Hermann Court.
Robles connected on 7-of-10 from the field, while hitting all three of her long-range attempts. She added a career-high six steals with three assists and two rebounds. As a team, Wilmington was seven-of-20 from three-point range, while Capital was failed to make any of her seven attempts.
"That was the difference in the game tonight, we shot well from the three-point line," said Wilmington head coach Jerry Scheve. "Spencer has been struggling all year with that, but really got hot tonight. Ellie (Kivell) knocked down some big three's. That is a big part of the game."
Capital dictated the other aspects of the game. The Crusaders won the battle on the boards, 52-45, and went to the line 15 times, while Wilmington shot 10 attempts.
The Fightin' Quakers scored the game's first six points, and never trailed. However, it wasn't without some tense moments in the second half. On two separate occasions, Capital trimmed its deficit to five, and on two separate occasions, Wilmington answered with a basket following timeouts.
"At two different timeouts, I told them I was seeing people take shots that they don't usually take," said Scheve. "Let's get back to taking shots that we practice taking, and when we did that, we were just fine. Part of that is getting into a game, getting too excited and not knowing situations. That is another area where we have a lot of room for growth. That is knowing the game situations."
Following the first timeout, sophomore Mary Moyer (Martinsville, OH/Clinton-Massie) hit back-to-back layups – both assisted by junior Ashley Andracki (Columbus, OH/Bishop Watterson). The second time the WC lead was trimmed to five, freshman Ellie Kivell (Hamilton, OH/Lakota West) drilled a three-pointer. The triple gave WC some momentum, allowing the Fightin' Quakers to push the lead back to double figures.
Wilmington's struggles in defensive transition enabled Capital to get back into the game. The Crusaders recorded 14 fast break points in clawing back into contention.
"There offensive transition was much better than our defensive transition, and that is upsetting to me because that should be a given," said Scheve. "You should get the basket covered in transition and we didn't do it all night long. Give them credit for beating us down the court. Give Shelby Sheets a lot of credit; she had a heckuva game for them. It's a big win for us, but it's just one game. This is an 18-game league schedule, and we have to come back Saturday and play better than we did today."
Three other players reached double digits, including sophomore Brittaney Jefferson (Dayton, OH/Chaminade Julienne), who tied a season-high with 12 points. Kivell added a career-high 10 points, while Moyer added 10 points. Senior Courtney Tucker (Cincinnati, OH/Sycamore) finished with a team-high eight rebounds, and Andracki distributed a team-high five assists.
Wilmington (5-0 overall, 1-0 OAC) travels to Marietta 3 p.m. Saturday for their first road game of the season.
