Mesa women defeated in home playoff
Justin Caligari
After securing the No. 1 seed in the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference the ladies from MCC were a shoe in to the regional championship, but they had to get through Pima Community College first.The Thunderbirds went up against Pima in their final home game of the regular season Feb. 27, in hopes of clinching the No. 1 seed earning home court advantage in the playoffs.
The Lady Thunderbirds maintained a small lead through nearly the entire game of up to eight points.
“One adjustment being made during halftime was trying to deny them from going up and down the court improving our full court press to apply and develop a more aggressive defense,” said head coach Kori Stephenson.
“The most difficult part of the game coming from Pima was their size and strength. We need to box out to prevent them from getting easy field goals close to the basket, shape up the defense is vital to our success,” she added.
There was no hesitation in the second half as MCC controlled the rest of the game winning the game 72-66.
“The only two players that really made a difference on Pima’s behalf was number four in terms of speed and agility and number 33 regarding her size. She was big,” said Katrina Graham, a sophomore on the team.
“Playing together as a team and outsmarting Pima is definitely what got us this victory tonight and I am very excited about regionals on Tuesday,” said Sam Darley, a sophomore for the Thunderbirds.
Gearing up to play Glendale at home, the Thunderbirds appeared confident as they took an early lead in the game.
However, as the first half of play came to a close, the Gauchos went on a scoring run and took the lead at halftime 49-44.
In one particular defensive series, Mesa was able to come up with two blocked shots, forced an air ball and then came up with a steal to bring the ball to the other end of the court.
A few fouls later and Glendale seemed to be taking control of the momentum of the game.
Outrebounding Mesa on both ends of the court the Gauchos suddenly started hitting their shots from all over the court.
In the final moments of the game, Mesa attempted to move the ball around to bring the game back within reach, but a loose ball ended up in the hands of Glendale, leading to the final score of 78-74 Gaucho victory.
