The Voice - Student Newspaper

Women's basketball looks for consistent results

By Justin Shepard
Online Editor, The VOICE

The Glendale Community College Women's Basketball team (8-6 ACCAC, 13-9 overall) was hard at work over winter break.

In a schedule that included matchups against several tough opponents, the Lady Gauchos had mixed results.

The team suffered a key loss while hosting LSU-E when freshman guard Jen Kelley made an aggressive move to save the ball in the waning moments of the game. She twisted as she landed, tearing both her ACL and meniscus and spraining her MCL, forcing her to have season ending surgery.

Prior to her injury, Kelley was a defensive force for the Gauchos, leading the ACCAC in steals.

Discussing her frustration of being sidelined, Kelley stated, "It's hard because I know where the [opponents] passes are going to go and no one else can seem to get them."

Following the one point loss to LSU-E, the Lady Gauchos rebounded with a huge win over nationally-ranked Schoolcraft (MI) College.

Several matchups throughout the winter came down to the final moments of the game.

An exciting duel between Glendale and Arizona Western was decided by a game winning free throw made by GCC's Tamika Howard with 10.3 seconds left in regulation, capping off a 94-93 triumph.

The Lady Gauchos' conference-leading offense took on the conference's strongest defense in Pima. This was another nail biter, but GCC was on the opposite end of the score, losing 91-94.

Determined to rebound, GCC recovered from a 19 point first-half deficit to defeat Scottsdale three days later.

Glendale's next game was against undefeated Division I power Central Arizona College. GCC's sluggish defense allowed a strong second half by CAZ, resulting in a 120-81 loss for the Lady Gauchos.

Two days later GCC demolished Southwestern by a 77-point margin of victory. A pair of Lady Gauchos had career nights in scoring as Daria Gall tallied 19 points and Crystal Gonzalez posted 16.

GCC returned to its defensive inconsistency against Chandler-Gilbert. Forcing only three steals and allowing almost 68 percent shooting by CG in the second half, the Gauchos stumbled to a 102-93 loss. The team was able to amass only nine assists the entire game.

GCC defeated struggling Phoenix College and the winless Eastern Arizona. Most recently, the team lost to Yavapai 98-91.

During the winter weeks, several Lady Gauchos were strong. Janessa Adeleye had strong showings, including 15 points against Scottsdale, 24 against Chandler-Gilbert, and 16 against Central Arizona. Krystal Pratt was consistent, posting 13 points against Arizona Western and 12 against Pima. Melissa Capone continues to be a threat behind the arc as well. Sophomore Brittany Lopez has been strong both in scoring and on the glass. Ceslii Granado maintains the top spot in assists in the ACCAC, averaging 6.4 per game.

With only a handful of games remaining in the regular season, the Lady Gauchos need to improve their defense. Several tough matchups are on the horizon, so it will be important for the team to build momentum heading into the playoffs, where the team has not been since 2004.