Yale Athletics

On Saturday, the Yale women’s basketball team (12–14, 6–7) put the beat down on Cornell University (10–16, 3–10) with the final score reading 63–42. 

At the start of the game, Christen McCann ’25 and Jenna Clark ’24 each sank a three pointer to propel the Bulldogs to an 8–0 lead. Cornell called a timeout then got on the board with a two point jumper. For the rest of the quarter, Yale stayed ahead of the Big Red by about three buckets. The frame ended with the Blue and White up 18–13.

“We played together, and really tough,” said Avery Lee ’25.

Yale grew their lead in the second quarter. With 2:35 left before the halftime buzzer sounded, the Bulldogs were winning by nine points. Brenna McDonald ’24 corralled an offensive rebound over the reaching arms of three Cornell players and passed the ball out of the key to McCann Standing wide open in the corner, McCann caught the ball and drilled a three pointer to put the Bulldogs up by 12.

After Cornell called a timeout, Klara Aastroem ’24 subbed into the game. Within the final two minutes of the quarter, Aastroem made a free throw, swished a three from at least four feet beyond the top of the arc and made another three pointer from even further out, putting the Bulldogs up 40–23 heading into halftime.

“[Limiting] the amount of shots they got on the defensive end helped us get more shot attempts,” Nyla McGill ’25 said.

The second half was more of the same story. Cornell came within 13 points of Yale in the third quarter but could not keep chipping away as the Bulldogs answered every Big Red rally with rallies of their own. Yale ended the third quarter with a 21 point lead and finished the fourth quarter up by the same amount. The final score was 63–42.

Five Bulldogs — McDonald, McCann, Aastroem, Clark, and Kiley Capstraw ’26 — each scored at least nine points on the night. 

Capstraw, who has started 15 games in her first year on campus, finished with nine points and four rebounds. Her performance compelled the Ivy League to name her Ivy League “Rookie of the Week” distinction this season.

McDonald led the Bulldogs with 15 points and nine rebounds. She also had two assists and one block. 

“She brings a lot to our team on and off the court.” Clark said about McDonald. “She’s a phenomenal interior defender so she provides an extra line of defense for us. She’s quicker than a lot of posts so it opens up a lot of opportunities for her offensively.”

The win ended the Bulldogs’ three game losing streak and put them at 6–7 in Ivy League play. 

Yale will celebrate senior night before their next game — the last of their regular season — which will tip off on Saturday at 2:00 pm in John J. Lee Amphitheater against Brown (11–14, 4–9 Ivy).