After our first two games against Bethany, we were ready for some new faces. We were excited for Fresno Pacific, and Coach Greenleaf said that it would be a great match-up for us.The game went well. I think we were all a little nervous because they are a higher division team and they had A LOT of players. Big teams always add a little extra intimidation. Their bench was loud, clapping and cheering in unison, but it wasn't enough. We came out on top, winning 83-77.
The game was close the entire time. We played great defense, keeping them in front, not allowing them to penetrate while also keeping their three-point attempts down. Freshman Megan Ross (#5) came in off the bench and gave us some great looks, stepping up big time. Jenna Ball carried the point totals with 21.
Their post, Kari Cox (from Bend, OR) seemed unstoppable! She made move after move at the basket, making almost all of her shots. She was also much more solid (and strong) than us; she made it look really easy! But, how much can one person do? We ran all game; our "4's" ran the lane really well. Since she was guarding them, she got tired. We wore her out. Of course, at the end, they fouled to stop the clock, but we made our free-throws to seal the deal. It was a fun game and a VERY satisfying win!
Unfortunately (because they are conference opponents), Northwest Christian College won their game against William Jessup, so we played them the next day. It is funny because before their Friday game I talked to a bunch of them about their season. Amy Croll, their point guard, I've known since 5th grade when we played AAU basketball together. She told me they were really up and down. One day they'll play great, the next they'll play like dirt. Well, that is exactly what they did.
Friday, NCC played extremely poor! They had a lot of turnovers and looked like a poorly disciplined team. I was worried because I know that they are actually a good team when they want to be (since I know almost all their players and have played against them before). I was worried that our girls would think they were nothing and expect to beat them without a fight in the championship.
I think they played their best game of the season in that championship. They were ready, focused and stepped up their game. We matched them, but for some reason (even though the score was close) it seemed like we were ahead by a lot more. I remember looking up at the scoreboard, expecting to be up by at least 15, and were only up by 3! I was shocked!
The game seemed really long, so when we went into overtime it seemed like an eternity. What is funny is that we played 5 extra minutes than the night before, and scored over 20 points less! What's up with that? The final score was 61-57. We made our free throws at the end of this game too, just in time. We only shot 61.5% from the free-throw line while we shot 78.9% the night before.
As coach put it, we won our first championship of the season. We all thought that was pretty funny. And I must acknowledge my teammates Jenna Ball and Crystal Idrogo for getting named to the all-tournament team. They played a great in both games and deserve the recognition!
It was a good weekend and a great time for our team to get just a little closer to each other. The only thing we were disappointed about was that the men's team did not stay to watch our championship game. Two of them did stay, and we were grateful for that. I guess since they played before us they didn't want to wait around. But, we stayed for their game the day before when we could have left and got something to eat. And, we went to the gym early with them on Saturday just so we could watch their game. We just wanted them to show us the support we showed them, especially since we were in the championship game. We understand that sometimes players have family there that they want to spend time with; but for those that don't, it would be nice to hear their voice in the crowd.
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