Once again, the women’s basketball team will try to get back on track, but this weekend there is no margin for error.

After dropping their first two conference games to Brown, the Bulldogs (3-12, 0-2 Ivy) need victories. With their season potentially hanging in the balance, the Elis host Columbia (9-6, 2-0) and Cornell (6-9, 0-2) tonight and tomorrow night, hoping their home court supplies the edge.

When the Lions visit tonight, the Bulldogs will have to account for the twin tower combination of sophomore Edytte Key and freshman Carolyn Schook, who each come in at 6 feet 4 inches. Key is second on the team in scoring with 10.8 points per game and leads the team in rebounding with 8.0 boards per game. Schook adds 5.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest.

“Our focus is going to be on keeping their big girls away from the basket,” Aubrey Smith ’04 said. “We’re going to take our time and execute our offense and not get hectic out there.”

Yale will have to be efficient on the offensive end this weekend; both opponents boast the top scoring defenses in the Ivy League. Cornell has dropped its last two games to Columbia but cannot be overlooked.

Smith said the team has been especially intense and focused in practice this week, but once again they will be without starting point guard Brynn Gingras ’04, who dislocated her thumb against Brown last weekend. Gingras missed time earlier in the season with an ankle injury.

“We don’t consider them must win, but we would like to win these two games to go into the Harvard/Dartmouth weekend 2-2,” Smith said. “We’re going to go out, have fun and play basketball how we know how to play, and it will come to us.”