Defense gets it done for Hounds
Woody McAndrew
Issue date: 2/3/10 Section: Sports
St. Michael's was in town for homecoming weekend to face off against Assumption on Saturday, January 23. Alumni from all over were in attendance. Assumption showed their sense of community by selling T-shirts and having a 50/50 raffle to help raise money for the relief effort in Haiti. The crowd packed in to Laska Gymnasium, with almost 200 people in attendance. The team eagerly awaited the start of the game, looking confident in warm-ups. St. Michael's always makes for an entertaining match-up, and this game was no different.
The women's basketball team won the opening tip but struggled to get their offense going early on. They were getting open looks, but the shots just weren't going down for them. St. Mike's started off on a 10-0 run before Katy Howard finally put Assumption on the board. At the 12 minute mark, Assumption found themselves down 13-3, and Coach Phayre called a timeout. Phayre was not happy with her team, telling them to pick up the intensity on both sides of the ball, especially preaching defense. Her team responded positively by only giving up four points over the next six minutes. Their new-found defensive play was led by Kelly Meredith. Her hustle paid off, as she was all over the glass on offense and defense. Meredith was getting her hands on nearly every ball that came her way on defense.
Picking up the intensity on defense translated into instant offense for the Hounds. Molly Griffiths started to take over offensively towards the end of the first half, scoring nine of the final 14 points for the Hounds. However, St. Mike's responded when Alexis Keller drained a three as time expired. Keller was the one generating offensive for St. Mike's, scoring 12 points in the first half. Despite the late three, the Hounds finished the half on a 19-12 run and went to the locker room only down three.
The Hounds came out in the second half hitting on all cylinders. They scored on their first possession and kept up the defensive intensity by forcing a shot clock violation, followed by three straight turnovers for St. Mike's. The Hounds kept up their stellar play, going on an 11-2 run over the first five minutes of the half. Gabrielle Gibson, who picked up two quick fouls and was forced to sit out most of the first half, sparked the Hounds on offense and defense. She quickly made her presence felt by getting steals on defense, which led to easy transition points for the Hounds.
The women's basketball team won the opening tip but struggled to get their offense going early on. They were getting open looks, but the shots just weren't going down for them. St. Mike's started off on a 10-0 run before Katy Howard finally put Assumption on the board. At the 12 minute mark, Assumption found themselves down 13-3, and Coach Phayre called a timeout. Phayre was not happy with her team, telling them to pick up the intensity on both sides of the ball, especially preaching defense. Her team responded positively by only giving up four points over the next six minutes. Their new-found defensive play was led by Kelly Meredith. Her hustle paid off, as she was all over the glass on offense and defense. Meredith was getting her hands on nearly every ball that came her way on defense.
Picking up the intensity on defense translated into instant offense for the Hounds. Molly Griffiths started to take over offensively towards the end of the first half, scoring nine of the final 14 points for the Hounds. However, St. Mike's responded when Alexis Keller drained a three as time expired. Keller was the one generating offensive for St. Mike's, scoring 12 points in the first half. Despite the late three, the Hounds finished the half on a 19-12 run and went to the locker room only down three.
The Hounds came out in the second half hitting on all cylinders. They scored on their first possession and kept up the defensive intensity by forcing a shot clock violation, followed by three straight turnovers for St. Mike's. The Hounds kept up their stellar play, going on an 11-2 run over the first five minutes of the half. Gabrielle Gibson, who picked up two quick fouls and was forced to sit out most of the first half, sparked the Hounds on offense and defense. She quickly made her presence felt by getting steals on defense, which led to easy transition points for the Hounds.
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