ELSAH, ILL. - Tonight the Principia College women's basketball team hosted Robert Morris-Springfield in their home opener. In front of a solid home crowd, the Lady Panthers got off to a very rocky start, picking up quick fouls on the defensive end which led to a lot of offensive hesitancy. After trading baskets with RMU, Principia was unable to find any sort of offensive flow, and started to fall behind. Consistent outside shooting from the Robert Morris guards continued to give the Panthers problems, and a dismal showing from the field (the Panthers shot 29% from the field in the first half) kept Principia behind throughout the entire half. Only through the persistent efforts of sophomore forward
Rachel Perea were the Panthers able to stay within range of the Eagles. At the end of the first 20 minutes despite their sloppy play, Principia was able to head into the locker room down just 2 points, 23-25.
The 2nd half showed marked improvement, especially on the defensive end. The Panthers re-committed themselves to boxing out and crashing the offensive boards (Principia had 21 offensive boards, 14 of them coming in the 2nd half) enabling them to find some offensive momentum. Senior captain
Karina Olsen and junior transfer
Kara Johnson led the rebounding charge, grabbing 11 and 12 boards respectively. While the poor shooting continued for the Lady Panthers, offensively they began to find a rhythm, getting several open looks that they were just unable to convert. Continued solid play from Perea, as well as a consistent showing from the free throw line enabled the Panthers to just pull out the victory, eventually taking a 10 point lead and finishing off the Eagles with a final score of 57-47. With points scored by almost every single Lady Panther, Perea was the sole double-digit scorer, netting a game high 18 points to which she added 9 boards (7 offensive), 3 assists, and 4 steals.
The Panthers look to continue to improve, and will get their next chance at competition this coming Tuesday, November 25th, at Millikin University. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00 PM.
