Ladies defend their house, suffered only one defeat

The Georgia College & State University women’s basketball team has only one loss at home after defeating Armstrong Atlantic 92-81 Feb. 16.

So far this season at home the team has a 7-1 record, averages 77 points per game and only gives up an average of 64 points per game. They have defeated Peach Belt teams Kennesaw State, UNC Pembroke, North Florida, Augusta State, and Armstrong Atlantic.

The team’s lone loss came against first place Clayton State.

What could it be that helps the team do so well at home? Senior Latia Love feels that she does best when she knows her friends are watching.

“There is a lot of pride involved when I play at home and I just try to give our fans a good show. They definitely play a key role in our success at home,” Love said.

Head Coach John Carrick sees that the girls feel more comfortable and less nervous when performing in their home court.

“I have seen some of their best games at home and some of the worst ones on the road,” Carrick said.

The cheerleaders strive to play a big part in the games at home since they do not travel with the team.

“The cheerleaders inspire us and help to keep us focused on the game,” senior Kristi Jones said.

“We try to get the crowd involved in the game and help our team to not feel so out-numbered,” cheerleader Brad Crowe said. “We try to encourage our team and discourage the opposing team.”

There are a lot of things that just make playing on the road more difficult.

“The traveling wears us down and gives us an almost jet-lag feeling,” freshman Ashley Williams said. “When we are at home we get to come in early and warm up. We do not usually have that opportunity when we are on the road.”

Ultimately it is just that “home sweet home” feeling that helps the girls be successful.

“They are on a normal schedule and they get to sleep in their own beds,” said Brad Muller, assistant athletic director of public relations.

In the end, “It’s true that we just do everything better at home,” Carrick said.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Feb 18 2005. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry