Women's Team Looks to Solve Offensive Struggles

Article written by Max Miess | Photo Credit: Max Miess

 The Clark State Women's Basketball team will be getting a steady diet of Bryant & Stratton to finish out their season. Three of their last four games have been against the Bobcats, and of the three games left on the schedule, Bryant & Stratton is the slated opponent in two of them. The two schools should finish the season having faced each other six times in a year where cancellations have left the Eagles with only 13 games. The benefit of facing the same team so many times is that it allows for plenty of storylines to develop.

On March 10, the Eagles played their second game against Bryant & Stratton. Their first matchup of the year was a 67-53 Eagles loss. The second time around was unfortunately similar. For the Eagles, Kelsey Boggs led the way with 21 points. She did a lot of work down in the paint, effectively drawing fouls and getting to the line 13 times. Aside from Boggs' efforts though, the Eagles struggled. They were only able to sink two three pointers in 12 tries, and ended the game with more personal fouls (11) than assists (6). The final score was 70-54, Eagles lose, but they would get another shot because their next game was a rematch against those same Bobcats.

Bryant & Stratton and Clark State faced off again six days later, and the Bobcats cooled off a bit, unfortunately the Eagles got worse. Clark State played much tighter defense and was able to neutralize the Bobcats offense somewhat, but it seemed to come at the cost of their already struggling offense. Makenzie Cauley was a bright spot, pulling down 13 rebounds to go with her 14 points, but the rest of the floor was seemingly M.I.A. The Eagles' tough day included a 2nd and 4th quarter where they scored just six points and eight points respectively. Their struggles from beyond the arc continued as they shot 2-19 from three point land. On defense however, the ladies managed to step it up a bit, forcing 19 turnovers and keeping the Bobcats under 60 points. It was not enough though, as the Eagles lost again, this time to a score of 57-42.

Taking a break from the Bobcats, Clark State took a trip to Hocking College to try and shake their five game losing streak. Their last win actually came against the Hocking Hawks, 78-75 back in February, so perhaps this would be their night. Hocking freshman Jasmine Manuel did as much as she could do to spoil that though. Manuel led her team with 18 points, and pulled down an astounding 28 rebounds! With help from Jada Lazaro, who earned 17 points of her and 13 rebounds, the Hawks managed to end the game with more rebounds, assists, and steals than the Eagles. The rebounding was especially egregious as Clark State could only manage 26 to Hocking's 51. Despite the ugly looking box score, the Eagles managed to keep it close. They went into the locker room at the half only down by two, and entered the final quarter within striking distance, behind by just four points. Mackenzie Cauley led the team with 21 points and eight rebounds, but it was not enough to close the gap as the Eagles went down 59-54.

So the losing streak extended to six games, and the offense hadn't cracked 55 points through that stretch. The Eagles return home for another crack at the Bryant & Stratton Bobcats. It was there that the ladies caught fire. The 28 points they scored in the first quarter of Saturday's game is the most the Eagles have scored in a quarter since February of 2020, where they racked up 31 points in the first quarter against Ohio Christian. The Eagles were firing on all cylinders early on and went into halftime with a 19-point lead. Clark State sunk 10 3-point shots in the game, as many as they had in the last four games combined. This was largely thanks to Makenzie Cauley and Mikalia McIntosh, who sank four a piece. Cauley went 4-5 from 3-point range and McIntosh added seven rebounds and 15 points off the bench. While those two stretched the defense with rangy shots, Kelsey Boggs worked down low, drawing fouls at a rate that saw her take 13 free throws, which added to her 14 points on the day.

For all the firepower they had early on, the Eagles seemed to fade back to their old ways as the game went on. The Bobcats outscored Clark State by 10 in the third quarter, and the Eagles responded by only managing eight points in the 4^th quarter and Clark State was in danger of choking away a game they once lead by more than 20. The pressure came to an apex with exactly one minute on the clock. The Eagles clung to a 1-point lead as Alaina Lyons stepped to the free throw line. With as much pressure as an empty gym can give, Lyons sank both of her shots to push the lead back up to three. On their next possession, and with 31 seconds on the clock, Kelsey Boggs powered through a few Bobcats and put away a layup. A 5-point lead with less than 30 seconds, it seemed like the Eagles would escape. The Bobcats though, had other ideas, as #24 Rajana Cox wasted no time finding the top of the key and burying a three-pointer. Cox's only three ball of the day brought the Bobcats back within two and the clock read 15 seconds.

The Eagles though, stood firm and held their ground the rest of the way. A Mikalia McIntosh free throw pushed their total to 68 points and that was enough. The Eagles won 68-65 in a game that started as a blowout and ended as a nail biter. A win is a win though, and this is one that head coach Jay Etter's team certainly appreciates. With it, they snap a six game losing streak, finally beat Bryant & Stratton after four tries, put their highest number of points since mid-February, and sealed a win in their last home game of the season.

Their record now stands at 3-7, and they have three games remaining, all against familiar faces. The Eagles next matchup is scheduled for Wednesday, March 24, at 6:00 p.m. at Hocking College. Following that, they have two games against those pesky Bryant & Stratton Bobcats. The Clark State Women's team has shown that they can hang with anyone!  We'll see if they can finish their season on a high note.