In an attempt to snap a five-game skid, the Boston University women’s basketball team will travel down to Annapolis, Maryland, on Wednesday to take on the United States Naval Academy.
The Terriers (4-17, 1-9 Patriot League) looked poised to capture their first win in nearly three weeks when they played Lehigh University Saturday. The first half featured three lead changes and two tied scores, as each team went on their respective runs. The second period presented much of the same, as the Terriers and the Mountain Hawks (15-5, 7-3 Patriot League) found themselves tied at 57 with just 9:25 left in the game.
Senior forward Mollie McKendrick and freshman forward Kara Sheftic have impressed recently, and in this last game, they had five rebounds apiece to go along with 17 and 10 points, respectively.
BU was finally playing team basketball, clicking on all cylinders. It looked as though the Terriers were primed for an upset win. However, a late rally by Lehigh sealed BU’s fate, as the Terriers fell to the Mountain Hawks, 78-71.
“We played a lot better,” said BU coach Katy Steding. “I thought we competed for the whole game. But we have to play better. We can’t keep settling. It’s been tough lately. I feel like the girls are okay with losing, and that just isn’t okay. We’re better than what our record says, and we have to start playing like it. I thought today was better, but not even close to what we need.”
On the other side of the ball, the Midshipmen (12-9, 6-4 Patriot League) are looking to string together back-to-back wins after defeating Lafayette College Saturday by a score of 65-60. Similar to BU’s previous game, the contest was a hard fought one.
The Midshipmen took an early 29-13 lead, and the game looked like it was starting to get away from Lafayette (11-10, 4-6 Patriot League). However, Lafayette responded with a run of its own and found itself down just 10 points at the half, a serviceable deficit.
The Leopards opened the second period on fire, as they sunk their first six shots to close the gap and tie the game at 39. Navy then responded with a run of its own to take a 48-39 lead with under 12 minutes to play.
“They’re a really good team,” Steding said. “We know that. Even when they have lost, it’s been close. They don’t get blown out very often. They’ve played a lot of close games in general this year, so they’re pretty good with adversity. They don’t panic when they start losing. They just re-group, something we need to learn.”
The two teams continued to battle, and Lafayette found themselves down just three points with 15 seconds left to play.
Navy had possession however, and the Leopards immediately fouled. Two missed free throws, by two different players, and two offensive rebounds later, freshman Hannah Fenske found herself at the line with an opportunity to seal the game. With just one-and-a-half seconds left, Fenske drained both free throws to essentially end the game and deliver the win for Navy.
“Good teams find ways to win,” Steding said. “Fenske is a good player. She’s been playing real well for them lately. But we still need to play defense as a team. We aren’t going to stop anyone if we just focus on one player.”
The Terriers have had a tough year. They are second-to-last in offense and last in defense in the Patriot League. They are also last in the turnover margin (-4.33). Despite all the negativity surrounding the team, Steding said she has a positive attitude about her team’s future.
“We can’t get too down on ourselves,” Steding said. “If we did that, it carries over, and I think it has. We’ve struggled, everyone knows that, but it gives us a lot of room for improvement. Am I frustrated? Of course. But that’s not going to make us get better. We just have to get better, and we will.”
When I'm not crying about another Geno Smith turnover, I am covering sports for The Daily Free Press. I am a New York Jets, Mets and Knicks fan, so I do not know what winning is. Please, have mercy and follow me on Twitter at @MannyGomezz
