Despite dealing with injuries, Ravens women’s basketball came out on top, winning close back-to-back home games versus the Lakehead Timberwolves and the York Lions.
On Friday night’s match-up versus Lakehead, the Ravens got some additional support from the Bird Gang, Carleton’s loyal fan group, who brought all of their beloved Carleton chants, as well as some loud pots and pans.
That support seemed to have helped the Ravens get off to a strong start. In the first quarter, the Ravens picked up 20 points, and went into the second with a six-point lead. At half they were up a narrow 33-24.
The third quarter ended up being a challenge for the Ravens. While Carleton picked up an additional 13 points, Lakehead cut their lead to three at the end, and the Ravens finished the quarter 46-43.
But in the fourth quarter the Ravens finished strong, stopping a potential Lakehead comeback and winning the game 65-54.
Ravens coach Brian Cheng said that Lakehead came into the game well prepared, making it a hard-fought victory. After the third quarter, he told his team how they needed to go out and get further ahead.
Injuries continue to be the major obstacle this season for the group.
“Kids have been hurt all year long, and it’s a part of the process, so it’s not if we’re hurt or not, it’s how we respond to how hurt we are,” said Cheng.
Saturday’s game against York ended up being tougher than the Lakehead contest the night before.
In the first quarter, it took over two minutes for the Ravens to get their first points, and the team had trouble finding then. They finished the quarter down 12-8, but cut the deficit to one at the end of the second. They trailed 27-26 after nearly tying the game before halftime.
After the break, the Ravens turned things around. About half-way through the third quarter, they took the lead for the first time in the game, and finished the quarter up 43-36. York kept things close in the fourth, but Carleton finished with a 57-53 win.
“York played well… we knew we were gonna have a battle on our hands,” he said. “They’re trying to play to win and they came at us all night long,” said Cheng after the game.
Veteran Alyssa Cerino said she didn’t feel like the team was at their best this weekend, but wins are always a good result.
“I think we could have played better as a team, so in a way, I think we could take that as a positive, knowing that we didn’t play our best and we still got two wins,” she said. “Both of these teams were very good, very tough, and we know with all teams in the OUA (Ontario University Athletics), anything can happen.”
“There’s no time to rest,” she said. “We gotta be more focused than ever, especially in exams–it’s gonna be a rough week and a half.”
Cheng was really happy about the enthusiastic crowds that came out during both games, especially the large showing from the Bird Gang on Friday.
He hopes more people will join the crowds as they finish the semester with three home games.
“It’s great to have the support that we have and it would be great to have more,” he said. “Let’s get more of the birds!”
Feature image by Spencer Colby.
