This past Saturday, Feb. 15 was the last weekend home game for the women’s basketball team as they took on Cornell College. They last played the Rams in Illinois back in December, where they were unfortunately outscored 85-42. The Vikings were hoping to shut Cornell down this time on their home court. However, the Rams are currently tied for first place in the Midwest Conference standings, so the Vikings knew coming in that it would be a tough contest.
Able to stick with the intensity of the Rams at the start, the Vikings led by as many as four points in the first eight minutes of the game. They were up 11-8 with 9:34 left in the first half. The Rams retaliated by scoring the final 16 points of the half, ending with a lead of 28-13.
The Vikings were unable to keep up with the speed of the Rams coming out in the second half. A scoreless drought for Lawrence of over eight minutes—extending from the first half—was finally broken by freshman Courtney Schmidt’s free throw one minute into the second half. The Rams continued to pull away from the Vikings and led by as many as 35 points at one moment. Their offense could not be stopped on this afternoon, as they walked away with a 68-34 win.
Sophomore Katie Schumacher led the Vikings with 10 points in the game, while junior Kassidy Rinehart and senior Alex Deshler contributed eight points apiece. This leaves Deshler just three points away from passing Carrie Van Groll for 10th place on Lawrence’s career scoring list.
Despite the disappointing loss, this game was a significant one for the two graduating seniors, Deshler and Amber Lisowe, who has been out with an injury for most of the season. Deshler stated, “This team has meant everything to me the past four years. I have met some of the best girls and I will be friends with them for the rest of my life.” When asked to comment about Saturday’s Senior Day game, Lisowe responded, “I’m really proud of the way the girls played the entire game. Cornell is a great team, but we went out there and fought hard for 40 minutes. I’m proud to be a member of this team, and I’m going to miss the girls and playing next year.” The final weekend home game was a nice day to congratulate and honor the two graduating seniors for all their commitment and hard work over the years.