The Carleton Ravens women’s basketball team extended their winning streak to four games with another two wins against the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks, taking Friday’s game 82-50 and Saturday’s 83-59.
After a bye week, the Ravens emerged strong offensively but struggled defensively. In both games, they continued their player-on-player defence.
“We were a little bit slow to start,” head coach Dani Sinclair said. “We’re just a bit inconsistent defensively. I think we’re trying to build a little bit more trust [and start] playing a little bit better team defence.”
The Ridgebacks challenged Carleton with a rougher first half and several foul calls on Ravens players.
“As a non-physical person, it was really tough,” guard Tatyanna Burke said. “I knew a few of the girls on the other team, so I knew they were going to be very physical coming into this … You can’t be soft. You have to play hard as a team.”
Much of the Ravens’ production on Friday came from guards Kali Pocrnic and Madison Reid. Pocrnic had success shooting within the key, scoring 14 points. Reid scored several three-pointers and finished with 21 points.
The second game played out similarly to the first. The key to Carleton’s success remained their strong offensive plays. The Ravens showed impressive passing within the Ridgebacks’ key, scoring multiple shots with this technique.
Many players continued to get fouled but less so than Friday.
The most impressive shot on Saturday was from guard Emma Huff, who hit a three-pointer just before the halftime buzzer.
Burke also impressed over the weekend with a total of 10 rebounds per game, leading the Ravens’ defence.
“Our communication is getting better defensively,” Sinclair said. “We’ve been talking all year about trying to communicate better and so as we learn to do that, there’s going to be some hiccups and miscues.”
Ontario Tech is only the second team the Ravens have played this season. Forward Emma Kiesekamp said the team is still looking for ways to improve offensively and defensively.
“We still have lots of hard work to do. [We’re] obviously grateful that we were able to clock some wins this weekend, but [we’ve] still gotta work hard,” Kiesekamp said.
The Ravens will play their first away games of the season with two games against the York University Lions on Nov. 26 and 27.
“The season [is] a marathon and we’re gonna have ups and downs,” Sinclair said. “This time of the year is a bit of a grind for everybody, but tough teams are able to demonstrate a lot during those tough times.”
Featured image by L. Manuel Baechlin/The Charlatan.
