GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.-- The Adrian College women's basketball team dropped its MIAA quarterfinal postseason game against Calvin University 70-47 Tuesday evening. Kylie Skidmore led the Bulldogs with 11 points and Makayla Clement scored five points, grabbed five boards, dished out four assists, and tallied two steals Thursday evening.
The First Quarter
The women's basketball team scored six points in the opening frame on Tuesday evening. After trailing six to zero in the opening minutes of Tuesday's contest, senior Kiara Wernette drilled a baseline floater with 7:09 to go in the quarter, putting the Bulldogs on the scoreboard. Later in the first with 4:47 remaining, Bailey Taylor would get to the line after Kiaya Warner found Taylor on the block, leading her into a shooting foul. Taylor would knock down her two free throws and the Bulldogs continued to chip away, now down eight with under four and a half to play in the first. After an 8-0 Calvin run, with a minute and nine seconds remaining in the opening quarter, Wernette drained a mid-range jumper from an assisting Julia Tierman. At the end of the first quarter, the Bulldogs faced a 14-point deficit.
A Shift In The Defensive Presence
The Bulldogs would skyrocket their intensity in the second quarter on both the defensive and offensive ends of the court. The women's basketball team shut Calvin down to a quarter low 13 points in the second. The Bulldogs would score 17 for themselves, as they continued to chip away at their deficit. Despite Calvin's first-quarter outburst, only one player for the Knights had 10 points at halftime, while all others had five or fewer. After a layup was made by Calvin, the Bulldogs would use the final 6:01 of the half to double up the Knights on a 14-7 run. As a part of that run, the women's basketball team held Calvin to only three points in the final 3:50 of the quarter. To cap off the first half, Jordan Phillips knocked down a jumper with 13 seconds remaining and came up with a critical steal on Calvin's last possession before halftime. Heading into the break, the Bulldogs found themselves down 10 against the knights.
The Second Half
After halftime, the Bulldogs started the third hot, knocking down two of their first three shots in the first four minutes of the second half. After a jumper by Makayla Clement and a layup by Kourtney Crawford, the women's basketball team pulled within 12, down 35-27. However, during the last seven minutes of the quarter, the Knights would outscore the Bulldogs 15-6.
Entering the final quarter of play, the women's basketball team trailed Calvin by 17. The Bulldogs opened the fourth with a bucket from Ashlyn Weatherly and a free throw by Skidmore to pull within 14 of the Knights. Over the final seven and a half minutes of play, the Bulldogs would only be outscored by two, however, the 14-point deficit in the first quarter proved to be too great for the Bulldogs Tuesday evening.
Historical Notes
This year the Bulldogs achieved many accolades, both individually and as a team. Tonight's MIAA Quarterfinal matchup with the Knights marked the third consecutive season that the women's basketball team would participate in postseason play. The last time that the Bulldogs had three straight MIAA Tournament appearances was from 2015-16 through the 2017-18 seasons. The 2022-23 season also saw for the first time since the 2016-17 season, that the women's basketball team would record double-digit wins. Despite tonight's loss, the Bulldogs are trending in the right direction heading into the 2023-24 season.
