J.T. Mitchell
Staff Writer
On Friday night, the Sewanee women’s basketball team came up just short, losing 77-64 against a first-place Oglethorpe squad. Nonetheless, it was still a very special senior night for everyone in attendance at Juhan Gymnasium, but especially for the three seniors being honored: Hannah McCormack (C’18), Kelley Myers (C’18), and Frances Lauten (C’18).
After a back and forth first ten minutes of play, Oglethorpe led 17-13, but Sewanee would regain the lead at 21-20 with 7:18 remaining in the first half. Unfortunately for the Tigers, this would be the last lead that they would see for the remainder of the night.
The Tigers did not give up, and they came out fighting in the second half. The team briefly cut the lead down to seven points, but it was not enough to oust the Petrels.
Rebounding would be the key to victory for Oglethorpe throughout the game as they outrebounded the Tigers 52-34, with 26 of those being offensive boards.
“We played really hard, but there was a constant disconnect on what we need to do, rebounding [in this case], and what we were focusing on,” forward Ali Chastenet (C’19) said.
The biggest positive of the night for the Tigers involved Hannah McCormack (C’18) as she became only the fifteenth player in Sewanee’s history to score 1,000 career points. She is the second player on the team and 15th player all-time to join the illustrious club as guard Bella Taylor (C’19) reached the mark on December 29 against Wooster.
“It wasn’t just me–it was a combination of everyone who gave me assists, everyone who competed against me to make me better, and everyone who has coached me and encouraged me along the way,” McCormack humbly commented regarding her accomplishment of 1,000 career points. “Playing basketball at Sewanee has been an incredible journey for me, and this was a great way to round out my career.”
McCormack finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists to lead the Tigers. Taylor finished with 12 points while guard Sue Kim (C’19) contributed 8 points and 5 assists.
The Tigers now stand at 9-13 (4-8 in the Southern Athletic-Association), and they will conclude regular season play February 17 at Centre College before turning attention towards postseason play. The Southern Athletic Association conference tournament will begin February 23.