Women’s hoops on a roll, young team finds success

The women’s basketball team played an impressive game last Wednesday against Saint Mary’s College, winning with a score of 93-44. The 17-person team, with only one senior and two juniors, has led an incredibly successful season thus far. Their record is now 15-2 and 7-1 in the MIAA. St. Mary’s stood no chance against the Flying Dutch, who had seven members of the team scoring at least eight points. Senior Francesca Buchanan led the team both as a captain and in points, downing twelve, followed by sophomore Lauren Newman who took eleven. Natalee Kott, a freshman, scored ten points throughout the game, one an easy basket with only three seconds left in the third quarter.

Kasey DeSmit, another freshman, made the quick decision to pass while double-teamed by St. Mary. “That play was a real extension of her growth of not trying to make something happen that wasn’t there,” head coach Brian Morehouse commented. “Relax. Survey. Find the open player. She knew somebody was open, because two were guarding one.” Morehouse has noticed improvements not only in individuals but in the team as a whole. “Defensively we’re getting better as we’re getting older,” he commented. The young Flying Dutch still have more to learn but are taking wins in stride, not letting tough competition take them down without a fight. The team looks forward to MIAA games on the road today at Albion College and Saturday at Trine University.

The men also played last week, winning with a score of 87-74 against Alma College. Sophomore Danny Beckman had a breakout performance after a tough knee injury last year, scoring a collegiate high 18 points in the game and a career best six 3-pointers. Junior Riley Lewis scored 25 points during the game, which included two points from the three free throws he shot. His miss ended a months-long streak of 51 consecutive free throw points, moving to 96.8 percent of his shots made. The men’s win was followed with an unfortunate loss on Saturday against Olivet College with a score of 89-62.

Their record is now 10-7 overall, 3-3 in the MIAA, and they are in a three-way tie for fourth place in the overall MIAA standings. They play again today at home against Albion and on Saturday at home against Trine. Come out to the DeVos Fieldhouse to watch and cheer them on!