A tough road ahead

Courtesy of Castleton Athletics

Morgan Raiche covers an Endicott College defender in a game earlier in the season.

Glenbrook Gymnasium will be the site of a heavyweight battle as the Husson Eagles visit the Castleton Spartans in a women’s basketball North Atlantic Conference matchup on Saturday, Feb. 13.  

Saturday will also be Senior Day for Jade Desroches, Bryanna DuPont and Ali Jones.  The trio has won two NAC Championships and played in the championship game all three years.

“Playing Husson on Senior Day will make the game a little more emotional but our three seniors have always seemed to rise to the occasion and I don’t think Saturday will be any different,” said Castleton Head Coach Tim Barrett.

Jones agreed this game will feel a little different than most.

“There’s going to be a mix of emotions that day but we need to come together to use that emotional energy as a way to motivate us,” Jones said. “This game could also be a deciding factor for who gets to host the tournament so there’s going to be a wide range of emotions.”

While this game could have a huge impact on playoff standings, Husson says they try to take everything one game at a time.

“We don’t talk much about championships or hosting, we try to keep the focus on the next game on the schedule,” said Husson Head Coach Kissy Walker. “There are still too many games that could change the seeding so we keep stressing one game at a time.”

Husson took the first victory 72-52 when the two powerhouses met in Bangor, Maine on Jan. 22.

“The first time we played Husson was a tail of 2 halves. We did a good job in the first half dictating tempo on both ends of court. The game got away from us in the second half. We did a poor job of attacking their zone and handling ball pressure,” Barrett said. “On Saturday we must do a better job of defending the basketball and keeping them off the free-throw line, while not settling for perimeter jumpers offensively.”

Eagles guard, Kenzie Worcester, had her way with the Spartans with 21 points on just 5-7 shooting from the field and connected on all nine of her free throw attempts.  The freshman averages over 14 points per game, making her a reliable option for the Eagles.

“She has been having a great year, it certainly helps when she gets off to a good start,” said Walker.

“Kenzie is a talented freshman guard. We need to make her put the ball on the floor and keep her off the free-throw line,” said Barrett.

The Spartans are 6-2 in their last eight meetings with the Eagles.

 

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