WEBSTER GROVES, MO – The Principia Women's Basketball team traveled down to Webster University on Saturday for a showdown with the defending SLIAC champion Gorloks. Both teams came in 4-1, so first place in the conference standings was on the line. The Panthers fought hard, but Webster's more experienced team played better and beat Principia, 78-61.
The Panthers had a rough start to the game as they fell behind in the first quarter with several uncharacteristic turnovers against the Gorloks tough full court pressure. The second quarter was a better version of the first though the score tilted the same way. Principia started to get into more of an attack going, but some foul trouble kept them from making a huge surge to cut into Webster's lead. The half ended with the Panthers down 43-28.
The third quarter saw some runs by the Panthers as they started to get more used to the physical play and the charging defense of Webster. The foul trouble from the first half materialized a little more and was a burden on Principia's short bench. However, the Panthers kept pushing hard and got the lead down to 12 with 3:32 left in the quarter. The foul trouble started to calm down a bit in the fourth quarter despite
Brin Hultz fouling out with a team-high 14 points. The Panthers started to get a great feel for the physical play and how to attack the press as they were able to win the quarter by 5, but ultimately lost the game, 61-78.
Coach Ro commented after the game: "For the majority of our team, this is the first time seeing the kind of physical play and pressure defense that Webster brings. With the bench that we have, it is impossible to simulate that in practice, but the women started to adjust as the game went on. We will do a better job of preparing the team for the next time we see Webster and the kind of physicality and pressure defense that they bring."
Up Next: Principia has played six out of seven SLIAC opponents thus far, so the Panthers will be back home on Tuesday at 5:30 pm to host the only opponent left: Eureka College. Then the Panthers will face all seven schools again before the conference tournament begins.
