HILLSBORO, Kan. – The Tabor College Reserve Women's Basketball team hosted the Reserve team from Bethany College last night in a rematch between the two teams which saw the Bluejays come in looking to sweep the season series. The Bluejays previously beat the Swedes 72-50 in Lindsborg.
The game got off to a slow start for both teams, but the Swedes would find the bottom of the net quicker than the Bluejays and would hold a 14-4 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Jaelle Johnson and
Tayton Smith recorded the only points of the quarter for the Bluejays, with two points each.
The second quarter would prove to be more of the same, the Lady Bluejays would find themselves plagued by turnovers and missed shots, combined with the Swedes hitting their shots, and would end up going into the locker room at the end of the first half facing a 19-point deficit, 29-10.
Malynn Beil would lead the team in scoring with four points, while Johnson, Smith, and
Katelin Long would each have two points.
The second half would prove to be moving in a different direction after the halftime break and a visit from the head of the Tabor College Women's Basketball program, Shawn Reed, who no doubt shared some motivational wisdom. Tabor would outscore the Swedes in the third quarter 20-7 and would find themselves back in the game and only facing a six-point deficit, 36-30. Beil would lead the team in scoring with 12 points after scoring eight of those in the third quarter. Smith would be right behind her with seven,
Sally Wine would be right behind her with five, and
Katelin Long and
Kaylee Kauffman would each have two points.
The fourth quarter ended up being the most exciting ten minutes of basketball of the night, with Tabor outscoring Bethany 21-14 and winning by one on a bucket from
Tayton Smith with 3.6 seconds to go. The Bluejays would get to breathe a sigh of relief after securing the 51-50 win over Bethany to sweep the Swedes in the season series and improve to 12-7 on the season. Smith would lead the Bluejays in scoring with 14 and Beil would have 12 to round out the team in double-figures. Long would finish just outside of the double-figure range with seven, Wine and
Kaylee Kauffman would each finish with five,
Jenna Uehling would finish with four, and
Kyra Shewey would round out the team in scoring with two points.
"Our first half tonight was very pathetic, especially the offensive execution", said Reserve Head Coach Kate Brickell. "The team was challenged during halftime and responded very well. Cutting Bethany's lead to sic points in the third quarter allowed us to be in a position to win the game. Despite the poor performance in the first half, I am proud of the team's fight and believe some great lessons were learned."
The Lady Bluejays will be back in action tomorrow afternoon at 1:45 pm to host rival Bethel College. The Bluejays will look to sweep the season series against the Threshers with a win tomorrow after winning in North Newton back in December, 64-28.
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taborbluejays.com.
Tabor College is a Christ-centered institution located in Hillsboro, Kansas. The Bluejays are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).