Cold shooting dooms Coldwater girls varsity basketball in loss to Marshall
COLDWATER – Sometimes a team can do everything right, run the right play, set the right screen, or make the right pass, but for some reason, the ball will not go in the hoop. Every team across the country has experienced this and Friday night it was the Coldwater varsity girls' basketball team’s turn as Coldwater dropped its Interstate 8 battle with rival Marshall by the score of 42-36 on Hall of Fame night.
“I cannot fault my girls or their effort tonight, sometimes you just have those nights where shots do not fall and we had one of those nights,” Coldwater coach Ken Smoker said. “Hats off to Marshall, once again they played really good defense against us. We cannot control whether the shots go in, but I really liked the quality of shots we took tonight.”
With the loss, Coldwater dropped its second game of the season to the Redhawks and its third Interstate 8 game of the year. The Cardinals will see action again next Tuesday when they face Northwest.
What Happened?
Coldwater struggled all night long finding the bottom of the bucket, with the Cardinals scoring in double figures in just one quarter, the fourth when they put up 16 points to close the score to within striking distance. A three by Elli Anderson with 5.6 seconds left closed the score to 40-36, but that would be as close the Cardinals would get as Marshall hit its free throws to put the game away.
“At one point I heard we had 10 offensive rebounds in the first half, and we only were able to put one of them back in for a bucket,” Smoker said. “The rest we missed from within three feet, so yeah, just one of those nights.”
Coldwater also struggled at the free throw line, something it has not done during a five-game winning streak over the past several weeks, finishing the night of 9 of 17 from the charity stripe.
Coldwater’s offense also relies heavily on the long ball, as hot three-point shooting has been a key for the Cardinals. Friday night, Coldwater only managed to sink three shots from beyond the arc, which severely hampered the Cardinal offense attack.
Statistical Leaders
Coldwater was led by Mya Porter, who had 10 points to go along with four rebounds and three steals.
Also scoring for the Cardinals was Rylie VanAken with six points while Coley Burkhardt also added six points and a team-high six rebounds.
Marshall was led by Addison Waito, who had 17 points to lead all scorers.
They Said It
“We are down 11 with under two minutes left and we get it down to four, so you know these girls never quit. We just need to change our goals going forward now. We know we cannot win the conference, so we need to focus on finishing second and that has got to start with our game next Tuesday. Our ultimate goal though is to be peaking when the postseason rolls around so we can make a run in the playoffs, and with the effort the girls showed today I think we will be okay.” - Coldwater coach Ken Smoker.
More: Coldwater Gymnastics opens home schedule with loss on Parent's night
What’s Next?
Coldwater falls to 13-3 overall and 5-3 in the Interstate 8 with the loss. The Cardinals will be back in action Tuesday when they have a big game against the Interstate 8-leading Northwest Lady Mounties.
This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Cold shooting dooms Coldwater girls basketball in loss to Marshall
