On Saturday, Feb. 17, the GC women’s basketball team took on Lander University during their Homecoming game. GC had a mere even matchup during the first three quarters of the game until it hit the final quarter, resulting in a loss for the Bobcats, 43-50.
Both teams had a low-scoring first half, with the first quarter ending with the Bobcats up 8-7. A near-even matchup in the second quarter landed the halftime score in favor of GC, 18-13.
During the third quarter, the Bobcats came right out of the gate, as Hannah Cail scored on two free throws. GC then got quiet, allowing the Bearcats to make a comeback.
It was not until there were three minutes left in the quarter that Myra Strickland, a red-shirt senior guard, put another basket on the board for GC. Strickland put up both a foul shot and an impressive three-pointer before the quarter came to a close. Lander’s impressive comeback went all the way to the buzzer, as they made a layup at the end of the quarter to make the score 23-24, Bobcats still up.
The fourth quarter was the highest scoring quarter for both of the teams. Overall, the Bobcats were able to score 19 points with the help of Ashyia Willis, Miracle Parker and Cail. Willis scored six points early in the quarter, while Parker and Cail helped try to rally the team back before the last buzzer.
While GC was able to have a high-scoring fourth quarter, the Bearcats outshined them in the fourth quarter, scoring a total of 27 points. This last-two-minute rally from Lander eventually put them on top, with a final score of 43-50.
“It was definitely a disappointing loss, being that it was a close game the entire time and that it was Homecoming,” Strickland said. “As a team, we took it as a lesson learned and had to move forward.”
Throughout the game, GC and Lander went back and forth, as they were tied five different times. Cail was the top scorer of the game for GC with 13 points. Jaleah Storr had a total of eight, and Deshaun Jackson and Willis both had a total of seven.
The GC women’s team, which is currently ninth in the Peach Belt Conference, knew that going up against Lander would be tough competition, as they lost a close game against them earlier in the season 63-68.
“We both have pretty good teams, so I knew coming into the game that there would be a fight,” Parker said. “We performed great defense for the full 40 minutes, but we fell a little short offensively. With the conference finals approaching, there is still hope, prayerfully, we will get another opportunity to prove ourselves because we have a great team that’s more than capable.”
With the team only having two games left until the PBC tournament begins, the team is taking every win, along with every loss, as a way to learn and grow so they can give it their all during the tournament. GC’s women’s team plays their last home game of the season on Sunday, March 3, at 1:00 p.m.
