By Laura Paquette ’19
Contributor
The Fighting Scots celebrated their Senior Day against the Western New England, Golden Bears on Feb. 3. All five seniors and their families were honored at the beginning of the game. Despite the joyous start of the game, it was a somber finish for the Scots.
The Scots had a one-point lead at the halftime, thanks to balanced scoring sparked by Olivia Stark’s (‘19) six points, and solid defense with both Jessica Ryan (‘19) and Jenna Olson (‘18) collecting two steals.
The Scots lost their advantage in the third quarter and failed to mount a comeback in the fourth, only shooting 11% from the three-point line and getting out rebounded by a 17-12 margin.
Game standouts include Ryan with twelve points and one block, Olson with four assists and three steals, and Meghan Foley (‘20) with eight rebounds.
After the game, the Scots attended a mini senior banquet that commemorated forwards Jenna Olsen (‘18), Kristen Smith (‘18), Sophie Linnell (‘18), and Shaulita Francis (‘18), as well as manager Sara Twombly (‘18).
Sophomore center, Jessica Wall (‘20), says “The seniors have pushed through a lot to have a successful season. They bring joy to our lives.”
The seniors started their career with seven players finishing the freshman season, and only won one conference game. They improved by one game in their sophomore year but failed to make the playoffs.
The team went through a coaching shift between the seniors’ sophomore and junior year and made the playoffs but despite an impressive effort, were sent home in the first round.
Their season is far from over but the Scots are currently 6-8 and jockeying for position in the middle of the conference.
Thinking back on her entire career, Olson says, “I’m always reminded how hard it is to win, it doesn’t just happen. I think back and think, whoa my freshman year we’ve only won one. But it’s not like I can’t believe we’ve won six games, it’s normal…it feels like we’re a respected team now.”
The Fighting Scots are seventh in the CCC, one game behind Curry College, and are looking forward to visiting their neighbors at Endicott Feb. 7.
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