Central women’s basketball team drops season finale

PELLA—Some early turnover issues for the Central College women’s basketball team gave nationally ranked Simpson College the only opening it needed to roll up a 109-64 win Saturday.

The young Dutch close the year at 6-15 overall and 4-11 in American Rivers play. They committed 31 turnovers, including 12 in the first period.

“Our turnovers hurt and their perimeter shooting was outstanding in the first half,” coach Joe Steinkamp said. “They really made us pay for trying to change defenses up. We thought we did a pretty good job of taking away some of their transition stuff, which is what a lot of teams have struggled against, but their hot shooting got them off to such a good start.

“We felt like we got a lot of good shots. We got the ball to the high post and we got a lot of open 3-point shots, but we just didn’t make enough of them.”

Simpson, with a veteran team that includes multiple fifth-year players, is ranked No. 5 by D3hoops.com and No. 6 by the WBCA with a 23-1 overall record and 15-0 conference. mark.

Forward Annie Swaters (junior, Deepwater, Mo., Lakeland HS) was the only Central player to reach double figures with 10 points. Center Allison Van Gorp (freshman, Pella, Pella Christian HS) had nine points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Guard Kelsea Hurley (junior, Scottsdale, Ariz., Desert Mountain HS) had nine points and four assists and guard Alayna Akiona (freshman, Honolulu, Hawaii, Kalani HS) also had nine points.

Central was outshot 52.4% to 37.7% and outrebounded 43-36.

Some schedule disruptions due to health and safety protocols, including a two-week layoff in January, created challenges for a still-developing Dutch squad this season.

“We talked about that after the game,” Steinkamp said. “It was kind of a weird year, from not getting a scrimmage early, and then multiple shutdowns and cancelations. But it was a fun last month of the year. We saw some significant improvement and had some really big wins. A lot of players stepped up.”

Saturday’s contest marked the end of Central careers for guards Emma Wright (Eau Claire, Wis., Memorial HS) and Hannah Wright (Eau Claire, Wis., Memorial HS).

“We’re sad to see our two seniors leave the program,” Steinkamp said. “Emma and Hannah worked extremely hard and continued to fight and get better. We’re proud of what they’ve done for this program.”

But with numerous younger players returning, Steinkamp is confident the arrow is pointing up for the Dutch.

“We’re extremely excited about the future of the program,” Steinkamp said. “We had a lot of young kids have really good years and, especially in the last month, built a lot of momentum going into the next year.”

Offseason development is critical, he said.

“If you look across the league, this is a very veteran league with a lot of juniors and seniors,” Steinkamp said. “There’s nothing like experience and we’ve got a lot of hard-working kids so I know they’ll continue to get better both on the floor and in the weight room, with coach (Kayla) Engelhard as the strength coach. I know she’ll have a great plan for them in there as well and I think the future is extremely bright.”