Vol. 71, no. 16
One upset not enough to break women’s hoops into playoffs
The Pioneer women’s basketball team entered the final weekend of the regular season needing to defeat the top two teams in the Northwest Conference in order to make the playoffs. The Pios nearly accomplished this goal, defeating the Puget Sound Loggers on Friday night in their home finale before losing to the George Fox Bruins on Saturday. Despite missing the playoffs, the Pios finished the year with a 16-9 (9-7 in conference) record, their first winning season since 1994.
The Friday night match-up against Puget Sound was the last home game for three of the Pios most important players, Carrie Centlivre (’07), Chloe Hansen (’07) and Sarah Moon (’07). The trio of seniors is credited as being influential in the program’s rise from last place to major conference contender. “The seniors have been tremendous leaders on and off the court and their very different personalities help balance our team dynamics,” said Head Coach Juli Fulks. “Their dedication and drive has been the catalyst to the team turnaround and I am proud to have worked beside them in building the foundation of our women’s basketball program at LC.”
It was fitting that Friday night’s contest against then-conference-leader Puget Sound was dominated by senior, Sarah Moon, who led the Pios offense with 19 points, in addition to picking up four rebounds and three steals.
The game was tight throughout the first half, with each team trading buckets. Five straight points from Crystal Castle (’08) gave the Pios a five-point advantage heading into the locker room-- a lead they would never relinquish. The Loggers closed the lead to three with eight minutes left, but consecutive baskets from Castle and Moon extended the Pios’ lead to seven. The lead was not seriously threatened in the home stretch, and they ended the game with a 68-58 win.
Free throw shooting played a crucial role in the contest, with the Pios hitting 12 of 13 from the charity stripe. Moon went 8-9 from the line, helping her accumulate 19 points. The Pios’ success in making free throws was evident all season as the team shot 74% from the line for the season. Moon made 77% of her shots for the year, totaling 86 of her points. Castle was one of the top free-throw shooters in the nation, making 83% of her shots from the line. Castle also finished the season leading the Pios in rebounds (5.6 per game) and points (13.5 a game).
On Saturday, the Pios missed a big win, falling on the road 78-62 to George Fox, who became the conference champions with LC’s upset over UPS. Allison Farr led the Pios with 19 points and Moon capped her career with another impressive outing: 11 points, nine rebounds and five assists.