Women’s basketball defeated Bates 65-48 on November 22 but came out flat against the University of New England (UNE) three days later. However, the Polar Bears came back with a lopsided victory against Salve Regina University and the University of Southern Maine (USM) the following week. Bowdoin’s overall record this season stands at 5-2.
“After that loss [against UNE] we’ve been working a lot on defense and just making sure we’re getting out to shooters and that we’re really communicating,” said Sydney Hancock ’17. “It shows in our last couple of games.”
The Polar Bears entered halftime with a 31-25 lead against Bates, but the Bobcats closed the gap early in the second half. Rallying for the win, the Polar Bears kicked their offensive play into gear with a decisive run that extended the lead to 57-34 with six minutes left.
Captain Megan Phelps ’15 exploded for eight points in the last few minutes. Overall, Phelps had 15 points in the contest.
Bowdoin held Bates to 26.6 percent shooting for the game and 15.2 percent from three-point range.
In a back and forth match against UNE, the Polar Bears ultimately suffered a tough 68-64 loss.
“There were a couple of unfortunate turnovers that hurt us down the stretch, and we left some of their key shooters open and they made some big plays,” said senior captain Sara Binkhorst. “We had a couple of lapses defensively. I think overall we played a solid game. There were moments when we really showed how good we can be.”
After a wild first half, UNE led 37-31. Bowdoin gained a 47-45 edge over the Nor’easters when Lauren Petit ’18 sunk a three-pointer with 11:20 remaining in the game. The Polar Bears gained momentum and maintained their lead until the last three minutes when UNE took a 56-54 edge.
“UNE changed up their defense and I felt like that affected us a little bit for a while—then we finally got into a rhythm against their zone defense,” said Head Coach Adrienne Shibles.
The game was extremely close in its dying moments. Binkhorst made a jump shot with six seconds remaining to pull the Polar Bears within two. However, UNE converted six straight from the free throw line in the final 38 seconds to secure their victory.
“We really could have done a better job of taking care of the ball and we had some great opportunities—baskets that just rolled out.” said Shibles. “I mean, that’s sort of just how things are in the game.”
Although Binkhorst and Shannon Brady ’16 scored an impressive 19 and 18 points respectively, the team’s sporadic scoring led to its defeat.
“Basketball is a game of runs and momentum and that’s bound to happen,” added Shibles. “I do feel like we can be more consistent and it is early in the season—we are a young team—so these are important lessons to learn that will help us.”
Bowdoin came back with a blowout 77-33 non-conference win against Salve Regina four days after the loss to UNE.
Petit opened the game with a three pointer and Bowdoin ran away with a 47-14 lead. After a promising 11-point run from the Seahawks in the second half, the Polar Bears answered right back with a 13-2 run of their own to put the game away.
The exceptional defensive performance was accompanied by a solid offensive attack led by Brady with 16 points and Marle Curle ’17 and Siena Mitman ’15 with 10 points apiece. Ally Silfen ’17 contributed eight rebounds and eight points.
The team is optimistic about the season.
“I think we’ll do great,” said Hancock. “I think those first couple losses were just really good learning opportunities in the beginning. We’re really going to peak at a great time when we start playing really hard NESCAC teams and we’ll be right in the position we want to be in—one of the best teams in the league.”
Shibles said she shares this optimism and acknowledges that the team has shown great progress, but knows the Polar Bears must also apply what they have learned so far to the rest of the season.
“There’s a lot we’re working on,” said Shibles. “On the defensive end I feel like we made a big improvement from the UNE game to the Salve game. Our defensive intensity was much better and our closeouts were much better. Offensively I think we just need to be consistently aggressive.”