Slow Start Proves Costly for Eagles Girls' Basketball

One by one the players for the girls’ basketball team walked out of the locker room. There were no conversations and certainly no smiles.

The Eagles had just endured their worst performance of the season, a 39-26 loss to Collingswood in a game that saw the Eagles score just two points in the second quarter and just eight for the first half.

It was not the way the team had envisioned starting a five-game home stretch that features some tough competition, including Haddon Heights, Haddon Township and Sterling. Yet, if there was one ray of light in an otherwise forgettable showing, it was that the lackluster performance came now while there is still time to learn from it, said head coach J McKeown.

“We talked after the game, and I tried to get the girls to understand that you are only as good as your next game,” said McKeown. "I saw it in practice the last couple of days. We beat Haddonfield (last week) and everyone was all excited. They were practicing, but their focus wasn’t the same as it had been prior to that.

"I felt it the whole time coming into this game, and I tried to tell them that (Collingswood) can beat you if you are not on top of your game, and that’s exactly what happened.”

West Deptford–who was without senior Taryn Bundy (eye injury)–struggled from the outset against the Panthers’ 3-2 zone. It was the first time the Eagles had seen that defensive look this season and they had few answers over the first 16 minutes. Collingswood exited the first quarter with a 14-6 lead thanks to a banked-in three at the buzzer by Erica Witherbee.

The threes kept coming for Witherbee–who finished with 15 points, all from beyond the arc–as she hit one to open the second and one to close it as Collingswood built a 22-8 halftime lead.

For all of their first half problems, the Eagles were able to get back in the game thanks to an aggressive defensive third quarter that netted them five steals and a couple of easy baskets. West Deptford was able to cut the deficit to 25-22 with 7:05 left in the fourth quarter and had a trio of possessions to cut the Panthers’ lead further, but the shots didn’t fall.

Collingswood was able to get the lead back to eight, and with 4:28 left, Megan Kirschling (team-high 10 points) fouled out to all but seal the Eagles' fate.

“When we got it to three points, we were moving the ball around real well, and I thought it was just a matter of time before we would take the lead, get up by about five points and ice the ball,” said McKeown. “They made a play or two, and we didn’t. Once they broke that lead open to about eight points, it just stayed there.”

“Hopefully the lesson is that we prepare better for these games and the girls are motivated by this,” McKeown said. “We were talking as coaches that it might be a good thing this happened now, versus getting on a roll and squeaking out a win when you don’t play well. Maybe it’s better to lose a game.

“Of course we don’t want to lose, but maybe this will help us.”