Mac hits snag at home
Ben Orr
Silhouette Staff
The McMaster women's basketball team did last weekend what it struggled to do all year: capture positive momentum and earn a winning streak.
But despite some last-second heroics from Taylor Chiarot, it all came to a sudden halt on Wednesday night as the Brock Badgers overcame some late drama and escaped the Burridge Gym with a 73-64 win.
Chiarot scored on an inbounds pass from Hailey Milligan as time expired to force overtime, thrilling the boisterous fans in the Burridge Gym for McMaster’s ‘Pack the House’ event, but the Badgers would start the extra frame on a 10-1 run and easily cruised to victory from there.
The loss dampens the team’s momentum gained from a season-high four-game winning streak earned over the previous two weeks.
After sweeping the double header two weekends ago in Thunder Bay, the Marauders brought their strong play back home, beating the Guelph Gryphons in a tight match last Wednesday and pounding on the Warriors in Waterloo on the weekend.
Coach Theresa Burns praised her team's effort with the reserved enthusiasm only a coach possesses.
“We are playing more consistently,” she said, “have we reached the point where we feel like we're doing everything we can yet? No. I still think there's room for improvement in a lot of areas, which is OK, as long as we're getting a little better each day and we're consistently on an upswing. As long as we're getting better everyday we're going in the right direction to get ready for the playoffs.”
The Maroon and Grey returned to Burridge Gym to take on the Gryphons flying high on confidence and would not be grounded, earning a 66-63 win.
Next, the women would travel to Waterloo to take on the last place Warriors. After springing out to a 21-11 first quarter lead, the Marauders would keep their foot on the gas and cruise to a 67-48 win.
Chiarot lead the game with 14 points. Joining her in double-digit territory was Stephanie Truelove and Liz Burns, with 13 and 12, respectively.
Coach Burns spoke to the importance of her team's first substantial winning streak.
“It's a confidence builder for sure. As much as they work hard every singe night, when you're not rewarded for it with a win, and you feel like you've put all the work in and all the preparation in and you don't get that win, it can be frustrating at times. Putting a streak together gets your confidence going, you start playing a little looser and a little better and it snowballs. Hopefully we can keep it going and ride this wave into the playoffs.”
McMaster has cemented themselves into the top tier of teams in the OUA West with the four-game streak, putting significant distance between themselves and fifth place Guelph with last week's win. Burns was cautious however, stressing the importance of every game.
“Every position you can move up in the standings in important, whether it's your seedings for playoffs or your court advantage in the playoffs. The standings are still really tight. We've put a little cushion, but that can evaporate in no time. Every game you're fighting for your life.
“The standings can change in a heartbeat,” explained the coach, “you've got to approach every game like it's your last.”
Former Marauder Nicole Rosenkranz scored 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in the Badgers’ win Wednesday night. It was Rosenkranz’s first game at McMaster since transferring to Brock in the summer. The third-year forward tore her ACL in the pre-season last year after averaging nearly 20 points per game in non-conference play.
Before the loss, Burns explained the keys to the game.
“We want to have a transition game both ways, we need to run and score, we can just play half court the whole game, we have to score in transition,” said the coach. “We also need to get back in transition and not allow them easy buckets. We need the ball in the hands of our top players tonight, and they need to put lots of shots up.”
The Marauders shot just 28 per cent from the field, but benefited from 22 Badgers turnovers and 16 offensive rebounds.
