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The Eastern Michigan Women's Basketball team lost their last contest against Ball State Saturday, Jan. 23. Their previous two games, against the Central Michigan and Akron squads were both wins, most impressively, the win against Akron.
Total domination was put forth by the Eastern Michigan Women’s Basketball team as they beat the Akron Zips 64-46 on Jan. 16. The Eagles have now won three in a row and achieved their first home-win.
The Eagles dominated Akron on the boards with a lopsided 57 to 38 advantage with 14 offensive rebounds. Coach Castro said that he thought the team could get second chance opportunities with their positioning and making sure that they limited Akron from getting second chance opportunities was an emphasis on the game.
Castro had high praises for guard Jenna Annecchiarico, as she provided the spark for the Eagles when the offense would become stagnant. “She is a talented offensive player. To be at our best, she’s got to get more [shot] attempts,” Castro said.
Annecchiarico did not let her 5’5 frame hinder her from getting a double-double, as she had 14 points complemented by 10 rebounds. She had the hot hand from beyond the arc with four made three-pointers. “My teammates were always helping me out...” Annecchiarico said, “…they helped me out by just getting me going, telling me to keep going shooting wise.”
Annecchiarico said that her teammates pushed her to shoot more since she is more of a pass-first type player. “Once I’m aggressive, everyone starts to perform really well,” she added.
Defensively, the Eagles created havoc, forcing 15 turnovers along with Akron having a struggling field goal percentage of 28. Castro said that “making sure we knew our personnel” was vital in creating the disruption against the Zips and was impressed with their “attention to detail” within the game.
The Eagles followed up with another impressive game against Central Michigan winning 70-67. Redshirt Senior Areanna Combs lead in scoring with 23 points. Redshirt Sophomore Ce’Nara Skanes tallied another double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds in the slugfest.
The Ball State Cardinals narrowly escaped with a win, where the Eagles heartbreakingly lost 68-64. After being down as much as 17 points, the Eagles collectively battled back to bring the lead down to one, until Ball State’s Sydney Freeman hit the three-point dagger to seal the game.
The Eagles look to redeem themselves next game at home against the Ohio Bobcats on Wednesday, January 27th.
