Courtesy of Yale Athletics

After over 18 months off the court, the Yale women’s basketball team (1–0–0, 0–0 Ivy) tipped off against Providence College (0–1–0, 0–0 Big East) on Tuesday to open their season.

The Bulldogs’ grit was tested throughout their tussle with the Friars. The Elis pulled out the overtime victory 63–57 in a hard-fought thriller.

Though Yale trailed slightly at halftime, the squad recovered in the second half with strong offensive performances from some of its key players. 

“It was a really good game to start with,” guard Elles van der Maas ’24 said. “It was a close game the entire time and it was kind of like a fighting win. We all fought together and worked together really well to get through it.”

The Bulldogs were late to the start, allowing Providence to score eight consecutive points. Yale rallied in response and cut the deficit to one with less than a minute in the first quarter. However, at the end of the first half, the Elis remained four points behind as the score reached 25–19.

Yale came back from the halftime intermission energized, however, opening the last two quarters with scoring steaks. The Blue and White started the third with a 7–2 scoring run and the fourth with a 4–0 scoring spurt. In the third, Yale’s runs kept the Friars to a one-point lead going into the final frame.The last quarter was a back-and-forth battle to assert dominance. 

The Elis led by two points with only a few seconds of regulation time left on the clock. However, the Friars refused to go down without a fight, scoring a buzzer beater at the very end to tie the game 50–50, sending the game into overtime. 

“Any buzzer beater that sends a game to overtime is a sign of great basketball being played on both ends,” guard and forward Robin Gallagher ’22 said. ”After the shot went in, our team stayed composed and just focused on the present moment. … I think that mentality is what allowed great offensive and defensive plays to be made, resulting in a win.”

Yale remained unfazed by the extra time and dominated in overtime, leading by as many as seven points en route to the final winning score of 63–57. 

The young Bulldogs showed off their depth with a strong overall performance from sophomore guard duo of Jenna Clark ’24 and Klara Astrom ’24, with each scoring a team-high of 14 points. 

“The game was a hard-fought, exciting battle between two well-matched teams,” Gallagher, who also had a strong performance with eight points to her name, said. “Our offense started to click and we played some great defense. Both of which helped us win the game.”

The Bulldogs will return to New Haven on Friday at 5:30 p.m. to host Northeastern University. 

In addition to being the first home matchup of the season for the women’s basketball team, the event is also a chance for the Yale community to pick up their tickets for one of the most highly-anticipated athletic events of the year: the annual Yale-Harvard football game. Attendees will have the opportunity to receive their free tickets at halftime, purchase guest tickets and participate in a student raffle. The first 100 student attendees at the game against Northeastern will also receive free “Beat Harvard Again” t-shirts.

“It’ll be exciting to have our first game back at JLA after not having a season last year,” center Brenna McDonald ’24 told the News about the upcoming game. “The home environment will be something special, especially for those of us who weren’t able to experience it last year.”

The Yale women’s basketball team had a 19–8 record in its 2019-20 season — tied with the 2017-18 squad for the most wins in school history.