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GAME SCHEDULE U Q BASEBALL at Pepperdine, 1:15 p.m. ^age 5 MEN’S TENNIS vs. Arkansas, 2 p.m. Friday, March 4, 2005 . MEN’S BASKETBALL vs. Ole Miss, 2 p.m. Sunday Women’s basketball ends season with tough loss By MIQUEL JACOBS STAFF WRITER GREENVILLE — Short-handed or not, the USC women’s basketball team was determined to take advantage of the SEC Tournament in South Carolina for the first time. Given a rematch for last Sunday’s loss to Ole Miss (19 9) that ended Carolina’s two-game winning streak, the Gamecocks put up a total effort Thursday night at the Bi-Lo Center in Greenville before bowing out to the Rebels, 53-50. Carolina (8-21) has yet to figure out how to succeed in the rournament, as the loss drops its all-time record to 2-15. The lone two victories came against LSU in •1998 and a 79-64 victory against Ole Miss in 2003. With its two starting guards missing the tournament, sophomore Stacy Booker once again prevailed on the court for the Gamecocks. Sophomore Lauren Simms has been sidelined since a knee injury in a victory against Alabama, and sophomore Lea Fabbri has returned to her home in Croatia to be with her family following her father’s passing. Entering the contest, Booker averaged 12.4 points, 5.8 rebounds and 38 minutes during the past five games after being promoted to point-guard duties. Fler numbers last night matched as she posted a team-high 12 points with seven rebounds. Junior forward Olga Gritsaeva and sophomore forward Iva Sliskovic proved to be marquee players, helping Booker control a team without its court leader and emotional leader. Gritsaeva, the lone holdover from USC coach Walvius’ NCAA team in 2003, used her game experience and leadership to pace the Gamecocks with a team-high 10 rebounds, eight points and two blocks. Sliskovic posted numbers all over the stat sheet with seven points, four rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocks. Also pacing Carolina was sophomore forward Melanie Johnson, whose two blocks put her in sole possession of second place on USC’s single season list with 54. “Players on our team stepped up with us missing two guards,” Walvius said. “Booker came out and did a good job for us. I’m proud of how our team progressed throughout the season.” The first half was kept close thanks to USC’s stifling defense. Trailing 4-5, sophomore center Ilona Burgrovi’s steal and subsequent layup by Gritsaeva gave Carolina an early lead and a dearth of confidence. On the opposite end, the Rebels seemed to be the ones with game-day jitters, as sophomore Armintie Price, an All-SEC selection, went l-for-7 from the free-throw line to start the game. In what ties as the lowest scoring half for a USC tournament game, both teams shot poorly in the first half. Carolina settled at 28.6 percent shooting to tie its lowest point total to end the half with 19 points. Faring slightly better, the Rebels hit only 29.4 percent, including a 1-for-13 mark from beyond the arc in the first half. The 24 points ties a record low for opponents points in a ♦ Please see WOMEN, page 9 JASON STEELMAN/THE GAMECOCK Sophomore guard Stacy Booker struggles for a loose ball against an Ole Miss defender in the second half of USC’s 53-50 loss Thursday. BUZZ CLASSIC Softball to travel back to Georgia KATIE KIRKLAND/THE GAMECOCK The Gamecock softball team will continue its string of tournaments this weekend in Atlanta after taking the runner-up spot in the silver bracket of last weekend’s Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga. ■ USC to face off against four tough opponents in tourney By MICHAEL FINNEGAN .THE GAMECOCK The USC softball team travels back to Georgia this weekend to ■compete in the Buzz Classic in ■Atlanta. The Gamecocks are .coming off a runner-up finish in The silver bracket of the Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga. The Gamecocks will open up ■ the tourney today against Boston. The Terriers (2-3) are coming from a runner-up finish at the UCF Tournament in Orlando, FI. They will look to senior shortstop Jamie Haas to continue her stellar play. As a freshman and sophomore she was named America East Player of the Year. On the mound, the Terriers are led by sophomore pitcher Brittany Detwiler. Last year, she was named to the All-Conference First Team, along with Haas and senior outfielder DeKenya Williams. After the Terriers, the Gamecocks will face Gardner Webb at 8 p.m. today. The Bulldogs (6-7-1) have been led by junior Christie Barlow at the plate so far on this season. She leads the Bulldogs in home runs with two, RBIs with seven and batting average with .344. Also, the Bulldogs will look to their outstanding freshman Kelly Linsley to continue the hot start to her collegiate career. She has already been named A-10 Conference Player of the Week and is third on the team in RBIs. South Dakota State will be USC’s first opponent Saturday. They are coming off a 4-2 record at the St. Cloud Classic in Minnesota to start off their season strong. The Jacks will look to their newcomers to set up this year because they lost five lettermen last year. In their season-opening tournament, junior transfer Kassy Hernandez led the way, going 9 for-17 with three RBIs. While their newcomers _ look to get adjusted to Division-I softball, the returning starters will be expected to carry the load. Sophomore infielder Steph Kuhl and senior outfielder Ashley Kalina started the season strong with two home runs each. To round out round-robin play, USC will take on the Ohio State Buckeyes (5-5) on Saturday. The Buckeyes, who won this tournament in 2002, should be the Gamecocks’ toughest challenge. Ohio State looks to continue its recent success in March by starting off strong in the Buzz Classic. During the last four years, they have a 61-22 March record. The Buckeyes’ biggest threat at the plate is freshman outfielder Liz Caputo who leads the team with 10 RBIs and two home runs, including seven RBIs against Long Island. On the mound, the Buckeyes are led by sophomore Jamee Juarez and junior Chelsea Baker. For the Gamecocks to do well, they need to rely on their pitching and clutch hitting. On the mound, junior Melanie Henkes and freshman Jessica Barnes look to continue their torrid start on the mound. Henkes has compiled a 6 2 record with a 1.27 ERA and four shutouts, while Barnes has a 4-3 record with a 1.57 ERA and two shutouts. At the plate, the Gamecocks are led by another freshman, outfielder Jessica Josker. She has a .409 average and last week was named to the Leadoff Classic All Tournament Team. If the Gamecocks are in a close game, look to either sophomore McKenna Hughes or junior Ashley Smith, who have both hit walk-off home runs this year. Comments on this sttny? E-mail gamecocksports@gtvm.sc.edu MARK HUMPHREY/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Vanderbilt’s Ted Skuchas, left, dunks over USC’s Antoine Tisby, right, and Rocky Trice during the first half Wednesday in Nashville. MUSIC CITY MELTDOWN USC blows late lead' prepares for Ole Miss By JONATHAN HILLYARD and ALEX RILEY THE GAMECOCK What once was a bubble team for the NCAA Tournament, the USC men’s basketball squad is now looking just to qualify for the NIT. USC coach Dave Odom lost to Vanderbilt for the first time Wednesday, and the Gamecocks will now play a preview of their first-round SEC Tournament game against Ole Miss. USC squandered what could have been its last chance to get into the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday night, as the Gamecocks failed to capitalize on another double-digit lead late in the ball game. This time around, a 10-point cushion was not enough to hold off the Vanderbilt Commodores (18-11, 8-7 SEC), as Carolina (14-12,6-9 SEC) fell, 75-65. USC jumped out to an early 12-3 lead behind junior center Antoine Tisby and senior forward Carlos Powell. Both banged around on the post all night. Tisby recorded six of Carolina’s first 12 points. Vanderbilt managed a run late in the first period and overtook Carolina for the halftime lead, hitting a buzzer-beater for a 34-31 advantage at the break. The Gamecocks held a 55-45 advantage late in the second half until Vanderbilt went on a 12-0 run to take a 57-55 lead with just less than four minutes left. Carolina managed to tie on the next possession, as sophomore forward Renaldo Balkman slammed home a dunk to even the score. That was the closest it got the rest of the game. Vanderbilt took the lead for good on a DeMarre Carroll shot and foul, giving the Commodores the edge, 60-57. USC tried to rally as time began to run out, getting down by six twice with less than two minutes left in the game. But the Commodores iced the game from the free-throw stripe, hitting nine of their last 12 charity shots in a game-closing 30-10 run. Carolina had just three field goals in the game’s final eight minutes. ^ ♦ Please see HOOPS, page 9