Two months ago, the women's basketball team lost its first game of the season. Fourteen wins later, it remains the team's only loss.
The team has completed all but one game of its out-of-conference schedule, and won its first conference matchup when it beat Colby 65-56 last Saturday.
"They've been working hard," head coach Adrienne Shibles said. "We've been playing really well as a team. Different people have been stepping up each game. I've been really pleased with their focus and consistency over break."
Captain Katie Bergeron was pleased with the team's play heading into the heart of the conference schedule.
"Winning not only helps our record, but it helps our confidence too," Bergeron said.
Bowdoin will host Tufts and Bates in the first full conference weekend.
"Two huge games, two great opponents," Shibles said. "Tufts has incredible guard play, really fast. Bates has got a really balanced team with some really big women."
Despite the difference in styles, Shibles stressed that the team wanted to maintain a consistent approach against both opponents. Captain Amy Hackett '12 agreed.
"We just need to stay focused and play Bowdoin basketball," Hackett said.
Bowdoin basketball—at least this season—means high-tempo play on both ends of the court. While Shibles said that she wanted her team to play smart, fast breaks and a full court press will likely to continue to be a large ingredient in the Polar Bear gameplan.
This type of strategy, Hackett said, plays to Bowdoin's depth.
"We have a lot of legs on our team so if we can get them tired that would be a big advantage," Hackett said.
Against Colby, Shibles thought her team struggled early because the Polar Bears got away from their usual style of play.
"We started really slow against Colby," Shibles said. "In a timeout, I said, this is not who we are...Kaitlin [Donahoe '13] did a great job of pushing the ball" and got the offense going again.
Shibles added that she thought Donahoe has played "exceptionally well" lately.
As for the team's goals for NESCAC play, it seems the sights are set high.
"Obviously it would be really nice to win NESCACs, but taking each game one game at a time is all we can ask for right now," Bergeron said.
Shibles said her key to the remainder of the season is avoiding complacency.
"We have really strong expectations for ourselves," Shibles said. "For me as our coach, the goal is to get better every day. A lot of teams plateau at this time in the year—we don't want to be one of those teams."