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By Franny Aliotta ’14 | Staff Writer
The girls varsity basketball team won their first game of the season last night 61-58 in a close battle with strong defense against Chandler Park Academy.
This was the first of six that head Coach Kevin Richards will miss due to his suspension for illegally communicating with potential students.
It was hard not seeing Coach Richards on the sidelines, captain Cierra Rice ’15 said.
“We want to make him proud and win these first six games,” said Rice. “We want to show him that we can still play with or without him, but we still love our coach.”
It was different without Coach Richards, captain Katie Kish ’15 said adding that the other coaches did a great job and the suspension made the girls play harder.
“In this game, pressuring their offense was key,”said Kish. “They couldn’t handle when we double teamed them.”
Their defensive effort worked really well this game, Rice said. The girls had a lot of great steals and defensive plays towards the end of the first half.
During the second half, the girls picked up their defense tremendously, assistant coach Bruce Pelto said. The girls did a much better job rebounding as well; however, the team hasn’t had enough offensive practice since they have been focusing on defense.
“We had good free throws down the stretch,” said Pelto. “Considering it’s the first game, it’s a win.”
The team is looking to win the Macomb Area Conference (MAC) again along with a return trip back to the Breslin Center for the State Championship, Pelto said.
“As the season progresses we are going to get better and have an opportunity to get back there (Breslin Center),” said Pelto. “But we still have a lot of work to do.”
The girls will travel to Port Huron Northern this Friday for a 7 p.m. game, Pelto said.
Photos by Harrison Krasner ’14
