Picking up a victory last week, women’s basketball tied last year’s win total of three. Although the women’s basketball team lost to nationally ranked St. Norbert College last Saturday, Grinnell rebounded with a 77-64 victory against AIB College of Business on Monday.
The St. Norbert game was a tough competition from the beginning. Early in the first half, St. Norbert’s 14-0 run left little room for Grinnell to catch up. The Green Knights eventually ran away with a 58-38 victory.
“A team like that, if you let them get a little confidence, it’s going to go a long way,” said Lydia Stariha ’17. “They just started scoring and we couldn’t come up with anything which is definitely tough when you rely on your offense to carry you.”
However the tables turned around on Monday when the team played against their non-Conference foe. Grinnell displayed a balanced scoring attack and by the end of the first half, the Pioneers were leading the game 30-25.
“We were able to dictate the tempo of the game and play Grinnell team basketball,” said Sophia Gatton ’17. “Everyone just seemed relaxed and confident on offense, which put us in great positions to score.”
The team’s effort to focus on finding the open person and moving the ball up the court allowed for easy buckets, resulting in a satisfying score of 77-64 by the end of the match. Alissa Hirsh ’16 led the offense with 21 points, while Gatton contributed 16, Kayla Morrissey ’18 added 15 and Stariha dropped 10.
With last Monday’s triumph, the women’s team equaled last season’s win total of three. The squad attributes this accomplishment to experience gained from last year. With the first half of the season wrapped up, the Pioneers hope to notch more wins.
“The team has gained a lot through last year’s experience,” said head coach Dana Harrold. “Many of them put in time in the weight room, gym [and] track in the offseason to ensure that they were much improved this year. We are happy with our progress, but not satisfied by any means.”
In the remaining schedule, all of Grinnell’s opponents, except one team, are in the same Midwest Conference as the Pioneers. With the future schedule in mind, the team will use winter break to recharge and refine its skills.
“I think the nice thing about winter break and the week leading up to winter break is that we really get to figure out individual skills,” Stariha said. “Just polishing up these individual skills to make the team a whole lot better.”
