Womens Mt. Hood team off to a hot start

The “Fab Five’’ are gone, and new talent is in. The women Saints have been working hard this basketball preseason, and had a chance to show what they were made of this weekend. They didn’t disappoint.

After starting their season 2-0, the Saints played in the Clackamas Thanksgiving Invitational this past weekend and went 2-1, bringing them to 4-1 on the season.

The four wins already this season is no small feat compared to last season’s nine total wins for Mt. Hood – but that team did only have five players, total, in most contests due to injuries and other issues.

Friday night they lost to Olympic Community College 68-52, placing them in the losers bracket of the tournament. Saturday they faced Pierce and won 62-53. In their final game on Sunday, they topped Green River 62-51, earning them fourth place out of eight teams.

The tournament was more than just an opportunity to showcase what these ladies can do on the court. It also allowed the Saints to grow together as teammates in solid bonding time.

Starting Mt. Hood guard Brooke Plecker said, “As a team we were able to learn more about each other and what we are capable of. We were able to see what we have improved on so far, and what we still need to work on.”

Plecker considered it time well spent. “Overall, I’d say it was a successful weekend. It is a learning process and I’m excited to do it with this team,” she said. She finished the tournament averaging just shy of eight points per game. She had her biggest game Sunday with 13 points and six rebounds against Green River.

One thing the Saints showed was an ability to come back in the second half.  Saturday and Sunday the Saints headed into halftime trailing by around 15 points, but came back to win both times. Freshman point guard Jessica Parker was proud that they won those games. “I would say the most successful thing we did as a team this weekend was not give up,” she said. “We were down in both games and came back and won… even with injuries and foul trouble.”

Parker led the team in scoring over the weekend, averaging 13.3 points per game, and she shot over 48 percent. Sophomore guard Chloe Cummins was second in team scoring this weekend averaging 12.3 points. Cummins put up 19 points in Saturday’s win and pulled down seven rebounds.

Part of the success this season is thanks to the hard work the Saints are putting in. Second-year coach John Hawley is making these girls work in practice. He’s even brought out a few MHCC baseball players to practice with them and compete, hoping to make them  tougher. He’s got the guys holding football pads during practice, knocking the girls around as they finish layups and grab rebounds.

“We do a lot with that to learn how to take on contact,” said Hawley. “Some of that stuff, especially in the post, we want them to know how to get a body on somebody and then be able to protect the basketball and come through.”

Another takeaway from the weekend’s play: The Saints need to work on their composure with the ball. As often is the case with young teams, they looked a little unsure of themselves with the ball when the defense was pressuring them.

Parker said, “We tend to panic and that’s where you’ll see more turnovers from us.” She also said the Saints need to work on their defensive pressure against their opponents.

Plecker acknowledged Mt. Hood has some work to do but felt really good about how it performed.

“Our team exhibited mental toughness. Each game we had to make a come back and despite certain challenges, we did,” Plecker said. “Instead of sinking any deeper and letting the score get the best of us we were able to dig deep and push through.”

It’ll definitely be exciting to see what this team can do this season. The next time to see the Saints hit the court is today in the Walla Walla Warrior Classic, but you’d have to make the drive to Walla Walla, Washington.

Mt. Hood’s next home game isn’t until Jan. 7 when they face off against Umpqua Community College, in NWAC South Division play.