Sports

Ladyjacks stay afloat

By Tyler Ohmann

02/07/2012

The Ladyjacks basketball squad lost two tough MonDak Conference games this past week, but bounced back with a huge win over Canadian Mennonite University (CMU).

DCB began the week with 67-50 loss to a tough Lake Region State College last Monday in Devils Lake.

“We had our hands full with a tough Royals team, especially in the first half,” stated DCB Head Coach Wayne Johnson. “Their size really gave us trouble, on both ends of the court.”

The Ladyjacks fell behind early and trailed by 21 at halftime. They fought back in the second half, but were out shot 44 percent to 27 percent in the game.

“They played well defensively but I thought we had some shots we just need to make, especially those around the basket,” Johnson stated. “We went in at half time shooting 16 percent from the field. I was pleased however with our second half play.”

Shakira Walker led the Ladyjacks with 16 points and three assists. Jackie Miller added 15 points, and Kayla Nelsen had 13 points in the loss.

Jordyn Sondrol grabbed nine boards to lead the Ladyjacks inside.

“We all just need to keep playing aggressively but with a bit more control and better court vision,” Johnson stated about the offensive performance.

Following Monday’s loss the Ladyjacks hosted the North Dakota State College of Science for another MonDak game.
Despite a close game throughout the Ladyjacks were bested by the Wildcats 72-66 on Thursday at the Woodshed.

“Good battle for us and just ended up being a game where they made more plays at the end than we did,” Johnson stated. “We had to battle back to tie the game and had many good opportunities to get the lead but just couldn’t get it done.”

Walker again led DCB with 17 points and nine assists. She also added five boards and two steals.

The freshman Sondrol had a double-double scoring 15 points and again leading the Ladyjacks with 12 rebounds in the loss.

Also in double figures was Miller, who had 10 points and also had nine rebounds.

“I thought we played well enough offensively and got plenty of good shots,” Johnson stated. “We took care of the basketball with only 12 turnovers. Those were positive actions that we need to continue.”

“Overall it was a disappointing result but we did do many things well,” Johnson added.  “We are still looking for that complete game and I do feel we are getting closer to that happening.”

DCB concluded the week with a 101-44 rout of the CMU Blazers in Winnipeg on Friday.

Seven Ladyjacks finished in double figures as the Ladyjacks jumped out to an 18-point lead at halftime.
They continued their high-scoring output with 55 second half points in route to a 57-point win.

“This was a good game for us after a tough loss on Thursday,” Johnson stated. “I thought we played very well offensively and shared the ball well. With FIBA rules the pace of the game is very quick and we seemed to like it.”

Miller, Nelsen and Megan Green led the charge with 14 points. Also in double figures were Josie Degagne (13), Maria Espindola (12) and Sondrol and Walker each had 10 points.

Andrea Chatfield led DCB with 15 rebounds, while Walker led them with nine assists.

Degagne added five steals in the full-team effort.

“We had great balance with seven players in double figures and everyone scoring,” stated Johnson. “Defensively we worked hard and it helped create a lot of our offense.”

“It was a game we needed to pick us up. I was very pleased with the overall effort,” Johnson added.

The win pushed DCB to 13-12 overall for the season. The conference losses earlier in the week dropped them to 1-4 in the MonDak this season.

The Ladyjacks played another MonDak game last night in Williston, but scores and stats were unavailable by press time.

DCB will also hit the road on Thursday to take on Bismarck State in Bismarck.