MYSTICS 85 - MINNESOTA 81
Myisha Hines-Allen had 18 points last night and Washington put together a 53-38 advantage over the Minnesota Lynx last night in the second and third quarters to down the visiting Lynx.
As it is with Washington, if Tina Charles has a big game, the Mystics do pretty well, and the former UConn Husky great didn't disappoint the home crowd with 31 points. The two were part of a four-playerd double digit point effort that improved Washington to 3-5 and dropped Minnesota to 3-5.
A 27-18 third quarter edge put DC in the drivers seat 70-56 and they were able to hold on, despite a late rally by the visitors to get the win.
Guard play is always key in a team's success and Washington got a good effort last night from Ariel Atkins (17 pts.) and Natasha Cloud (11 points) to contribute to the win.
Charles has had four 30 point plus games this season and leads the WNBA with 25.1 ppg. She's also shooting 48% from the floor. It makes one wonder just how good the Mystics might be if they had Elena Della Donne in the lineup. She's taking things day-to-day, though and hasn't set a date for her comeback. It also raises the question of how Washington will handle things when she does. Will it put Hines-Allen on the benc h as a reserve, or will Washington play the trio of Charles, Della Donne and Hines-Allen as starters and sit Shavonte Zellous?
Washington remains home for their next contest, when they bring in the LA Sparks (4-3) Thursday night.
FSU 8 -- OKLAHOMA 4
The first game in the WCWS Finals took place last night in Oklahoma City and it was Florida State often and early, bombarding the Sooners 8-4/
FSU held a 7-0 lead after the top of the fourth -- a five-run inning helped that explosion -- and I was beginning to wonder if this one might get run ruled. Ex UofL pitcher Danielle Watson wasn't getting battered by Sooner bats yet and FSU seemed to be having a field day against OU hurler Nicole May.
The Sooners weren't quite ready to stop playing for the night, though. They went back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the fourth against Watson and added two more in the bottom of the sixth to chase Watson from the circle and make it 7-4.
Kat Sandercock came in to pitch and to save the day for the ACC school, though, and the Noles picked up a top of the seventh inning run to double the score and take the contest.
It's interesting to note that each time this year OU has lost a game, the losing streak has stopped there. It happened early in the season against Georgia and most recently in the WCWS against James Madison. A two-game losing streak this time of year equates to your season being over, so the pressure is on the Sooners tonight to "even it up".
We also learned more about the "catcher interference" call by an umpire that most of us knew last night. When the catcher puts her knee down before catching the ball, that does constitute as blocking the plate without possession of the ball. Thus, the obstruction call comes into play.
The runner has to be given an opportunity to reach the plate, and in this case with the knee down without the ball, that is why obstruction was charged to the catcher.
OU came into the WCWS as the #1 seed and now have a 54-4 record. The Noles are 49-11-1 as the #10 seed and the tie came against our Louisville Softball squad -- a matter of travel arrangements necessitating FSU leave Ulmer and head to the airport.
Have a wonderful Wednesday!
paulie
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