Written by Joseph Hubbs. Media by Morgan Johnson.
On Saturday, Dec. 7, the Lady Panthers found a new gear on offense and dominated Blackburn in the afternoon contest. Right off of the beginning tip, Greenville scored a fast break bucket and established the fast pace they would command throughout the rest of the game. Senior Emily Gundy helped kick start the Panthers offense in the first half with an early three pointer and an and-one conversion. Sophomore forward, Coley Baker also sparked the Panthers surge with consecutive blocks in the Panthers’ zone, and drawing fouls on the offensive end. Within five minutes of play, the Panthers already owned a solid 20-5 lead over the Beavers.
The quick success allowed Coach Mulholland to give his starters early rest, and the Panthers never lost their lead. With five minutes left to play, Greenville commanded a 21 point lead. A high low pass to Stephanie Franco for an easy layup ended the first half on at 60-41 on a high note.
In the second half, Blackburn came out of the locker room with a different assault. Beavers forward, Ciara Morgan exploded off the bench and found a way through the Panthers’ stellar defense. Blackburn also implemented a half court press that the Panthers initially struggled to work through. Gundy quieted any chances of a comeback however, and put on a three point show to regain a lofty lead that ended eventually ended at a hefty 97-71.
Morgan, a junior from Springfield, Ill, sporting the leopard print socks, finished the game with 30 points, eight steals, and 11 rebounds.
One player would not be the downfall of Greenville though, and the Panthers held the rest of the Beavers to 25 percent shooting from the field. On the other hand, six Panthers finished the game with double figures, and as a team shot a mind blowing 51.5 percent field goal percentage. Gundy led the scoring with 22 points and six assists, along with collecting eight rebounds. Freshman point guard, Claire Schmitt had a great game facilitating the ball with five steals, four assists and 12 points. Off the bench sophomore Missy Deal gave some valuable minutes down low, earning 11 points in heavy traffic. Other key contributors were Baker with 10 points and seven blocks, senior Jamie Schollenbruch with 13 points, and freshman Whitney Vitt with 10 points. Junior Miranda Murray also came off the bench with five flashy passes for assists in a fabulous team effort by the Panthers.
The Lady Panthers demonstrated Saturday that they can be a fun team to watch. Come support your Panthers after break when they take on Westminster at home on Saturday, Jan. 11.
