After three losses and two wins over winter break, the women’s basketball team opens the spring semester with a win against Eastern New Mexico University. The final score was 73-55 to redeem themselves from the games over winter break.
“This game we knew coming in we had to redeem ourselves because we shouldn’t have lost the games over break. We came out, clicked together and stayed on the same page. We had a lot of assists and were working together well,” Whitney Taylor, forward and education senior said.
Jasmine Richardson, guard and exercise physiology senior, and Avery Queen, forward/center and biology senior, made two three-point shots in the first two minutes of the first quarter. Followed by a basket by Taylor at the 6:45 mark bringing the score to 8-4. At the 5:00 mark, the scored was tied at 5-5, not long after the score was brought, up to 11-11. That was the last time in the first half that Eastern New Mexico University came close to the women. Micheline Mercelita, forward and kinesiology senior, made a basket at the 4:25 mark and broke the tie. Not long after, Taylor rebounded and dribbled down the court to Chelcie Kizart, guard and pre-physical therapy junior, who then made a basket to make the score 15-11. With 32 seconds left to the quarter, Hannah Reynolds, center and health science freshman, brought the score to 24-15. The score at the end of first quarter was 24-17.
The second quarter began with Richardson making one out of two foul shots, followed by a three-pointer by Taylor making the score 28-19. At the 7:45 mark, Queen made a basket to bring the team eleven points ahead of Eastern New Mexico. Mercelita was up for foul shots. After making one out of two, she stole the ball and drove it up for a basket. At the 2:46 mark, the score was 38-26. With 29 seconds left before halftime, Reynolds was given foul shots and made both. The score before halftime was 46-31.
“We came together in times of adversity, but we started separating when things got hard. We were able to come together in the fourth quarter to finish it,” Reynolds said.
There was only a nine point increase by the women’s team in the third quarter. At the 8:43 mark, Richardson made the only regular basket of the quarter. The rest of the quarter was dependent on foul shots and defense. The women were able to hold off Eastern New Mexico with their defense. ENMU had a 12 point increase but was still trailing behind the women’s basketball team. The final score of the third quarter was 55-43 with the women still ahead.
The fourth quarter picked back up compared after the slow third quarter. Mercelita made added three points to the scoreboard with a basket and a foul shot. At the 4:49 markMica Schnieder, guard and mass communications sophomore, made two fouls shots and brought the score to 61-51. Reynolds scored two points at the 3:03 mark. She then made two separate foul shots and at the 2:11 mark the score was 67-53. Taylor finished off the game making three of the foul shots given to her at the 9 seconds mark. The final score of the game was 73-55.
“In the past few games we were starting really slow in the first half. So we needed to develop the ability to be a first half team and not just a second half team. Today, we really became more of not just a second half team but a first half team as well,” Kizart said.
This game has made the women’s basketball record 9-5. They will return to D. L. Ligon Coliseum on Jan. 18 at 6 p.m. against Texas Women’s University.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM STATS
- Points per game: 65
- Rebounds per game: 43.2
- Assists per game: 13
- Steals per game: 7.4
