Women search for consistency
By Jake Naas
IV Leader Sports Writer
When talking about the young IVCC women’s basketball team
this year, the words consistency and potential often come into the discussion.
With a 6-5 record and plaguing injuries for the Lady Eagles,
the word consistency comes because the team has been up-and-down.
The word potential comes from what the team could make of
themselves at the end of 2005 and the start of 2006.
“We are just a young team that really hasn’t reached our
potential,” says coach Steve Crick. “I think the fact that we are (6-5) is
really encouraging.”
The Lady Eagles can’t wait until they are back to full
strength and everybody is healthy. Two of the three Lady Eagles top scorers have
not been 100 percent. Freshman guard Quortney Gibson, who is averaging around 20
points per game, has played in the last four games, but has battled a severe
ankle sprain.
The Lady Eagles third-leading scorer, sophomore guard Tiffany
Leonard, who averages around 13 points a contest, has also missed some time. It
is easy to see why the Lady Eagles would love to be healthy.
“Tiffany is really the only player that saw substantial time
last year playing,” Crick said. “Having the injuries we have had, we are
definitely haven’t reached what we are capable of doing.”
Along with Gibson, freshman Markita Barnes has carried the
scoring load, averaging around 20 points per game.
Along with the top three scorers, freshmen Amanda Doughtery
and Lindsey Rader and sophomore Lisa Ghigi have all seen time. Although Crick
says they have played well, they are still looking for consistent numbers.
“I think are really just trying to be more consistent,” Crick
said. “We’ve really all been up-and-down,” said Crick.
The team had their best game of the season with a 78-31 win
on Nov. 29 over Prairie State but fell to McHenry on Dec. 1.
The Lady Eagles begin a homestretch that includes five of
seven games at home, beginning with a showdown against Lake County on Thursday,
Dec. 8.