Central women’s basketball team falls to Augustana
Central College
PELLA — The Central College women’s basketball team played tough defense, but struggled offensively in a 58-55 loss to Augustana (Ill.) Saturday.
The Dutch (6-2) continued to fight until the final buzzer, despite trailing by seven with 29 seconds left. A 3-pointer by guard Kaitlin Stump (junior, Lancaster, Mo., Schuyler R-1 HS) trimmed the Augustana (3-3) lead to four with 19 seconds to go. Guard Rachel Evans (senior, Fort Dodge) then came up with one of her seven steals and made two free throws after being fouled. Trailing by two, the Dutch fouled the Vikings. Augustana made one of two at the line to extend its lead to 58-55 with one second left, but Central’s last-second heave fell short.
Coach Chelsea Petersen liked what her team did on the defensive end of the floor Saturday.
“I felt we came out and put forth an overall tremendous defensive effort,” said Petersen. “We held Augustana to under 60 points and any time you hold a team under 60 points you should win a basketball game.”
Petersen said Central needs to do the little things, like defensive rebounding, better. The Dutch had the edge in total rebounds 31-28, but gave up 11 offensive boards to the Vikings.
“Multiple times today we had a great defensive possession and then gave up an offensive rebound and put-back,” said Petersen.
The Dutch rebounded the ball well on the offensive glass, grabbing 17 offensive rebounds as a team. Forward Jackie Kriegel (freshman, Marengo, Iowa Valley HS) led the team with six offensive boards.
The Central coach said the Vikings played a physical game, which will benefit her team later in the season.
“It gave our team a taste of what conference play is going to be like every Wednesday and Saturday night,” said Petersen. “Having that experience will hopefully allow our players to get in the right mental mindset in order to perform at a high level throughout conference play.”
Evans continued her strong play off the bench for the Dutch. She led all scorers with 16 points, while she impacted the game on defense with seven steals.
“Rachel Evans continued to play well,” said Petersen. “She was really aggressive and made some really good plays. No question we are a better team when she is on the court.”
Stump was also in double figures for Central, finishing the game with 13 points. The Vikings were led by Marissa Pezzopane, who scored 14 points, while Jen VanWatermeulen added nine. Olivia Mayer had six points, six rebounds and eight assists for Augustana.
Next up for the Dutch is a road game at Webster (Mo.) (5-4) Friday at 6 p.m.
