After an early week defeat by Philadelphia University, the West Chester Lady Rams made key strides in PSAC East league play with vital wins over Cheyney and Mansfield.”It was a debacle, our worst performance of the year.” coach Deirdre Kane said after Monday night’s 80-61 loss to Philadelphia University. Monday’s game was riddled with turnovers, missed shots and questionable timeout usage.
After the game, the coach was asked why the first timeout wasn’t taken sooner, rather than two minutes into the second half when the Rams were down by as many as 12. “I probably should have called a timeout there” Kane said.
Disappointed after the game, coach Kane declared, “It’s a working progress, but we got to make a statement, now” “As far as what we are doing, we are not being smart with the ball,” she continued.
West Chester came out Wednesday night at Hollinger Field House trying to snap a three game losing streak against their arch-rival Cheyney. West Chester came out slow again and took a timeout two minutes into the game before being down six early.
“Let’s go take care of the ball,” Kane screamed from the sidelines. The Lady Rams responded by taking a seven point lead into halftime. It only ballooned from there as West Chester beat the Lady Wolves of Cheyney 77-62.
“It’s my favorite time of the year,” junior Katie Kline said after the game. Kline had a double-double, scoring 20 points and pulling down 10 rebounds. “I’d like to carry on the tradition of beating everyone,” Kline joked afterwards.
Early, West Chester battled with the crowd noise as a strong following from Cheyney invaded. “You come in here, and the crowd is wild. You just have to play,” sophomore Natalie Winters beckoned. Winter had 10 points, 5 assists, but she shined on defense.
The Lady Rams attempted to carry-over the momentum from Wednesday’s game, as they faced Mansfield Mountaineers in another key PSAC East game at home Saturday afternoon.
The first half started as a defensive struggle as Mansfield and West Chester used double-coverage and zone defense to leave the game deadlocked. Mansfield took the lead 22-18 until Janelle Garber checked in and reeled off seven straight points in lead to a 12-0 run by the Lady Rams, which ultimately helped to culminate in a 70-63 win over Mansfield. Garber scored 17 points in 17 minutes of play.
“I mustn’t be that smart because I should play her 40 minutes and she’d have 40 points,” Kane teased afterward. “It was Janelle’s breakout game. We know that Janelle is capable of this. She didn’t surprise us.”
“I’ve learned a lot,” Garber said. “It was a good win, but there’s always work to do.”
At the beginning of the second half, the Rams led by as many as eight. Mansfield disintegrated the deficit and eventually took the lead at 10:27 in the second half. West Chester bounced back with clutch play from Janelle Garber with two free throws and two of Katie Kline 15 foot jump-shots to take a seven point lead. It was never in doubt from that point.
“If it’s an open shot, you have to take it,” Kline insisted. Kline accounted for 15 points and 15 rebounds in Saturday’s game.
Kane continues to urge taking things one game at a time, “The most important game is the next one,” she said. “We’re trying to get back into the playoffs. Back where we feel the program belongs.”
COMING UP: West Chester travels to Bloomsburg to face the Lady Huskies at 5:30 p.m., in another PSAC East matchup on Monday. Wednesday, the Rams return to Hollinger Field House to play rival Millersville at 6:00 p.m. To wrap up the week, West Chester plays Kutztown at 1:00 p.m. Both games can be heard live and EXCLUSIVELY on 91.7 FM WCUR and online at www.wcur.fm