By Joshua Woolverton

“We would tell ourselves 10 more, 10 more, now eight more,” Caitlyn Gilbert said. “Coach told us that his goal for us is 50 points so we kept pushing ourselves to get there.”

The effort the varsity girls basketball team gave was evident as the Lions cruised past the Rosedale Panthers by a score of 62-42 Tuesday Dec. 10, well surpassing the goal coach Gary Finch had given his team.

“We did a good job driving and setting picks to get the ball down low,” Finch said. “The guards were able to drive in and get the ball to our bigs who then did a good job finishing.”

This was the Lions second victory over the Panthers this season after defeating them previously in a tournament by a score of 48-44. Finch said the team started out slower than normal because they were trying to get a feel for how they would move the ball.  

The Lions knew that Rosedale had multiple shooters so they used a 1-3-1 defense to limit the open shots that would be available.

“Playing them before definitely helped us tonight,” Gilbert said. “We were able to know who their shooters were and we could be prepared with what kind of defense we needed to run to stop them.”

Following the first quarter, Finch said the team felt more comfortable which allowed them to be more aggressive. In the final quarter the team put up 26 points to finish strong.

“Staying out of foul trouble allowed us to push it a little bit tonight which led to turnovers and the ability to finish.” Finch said.

Gilbert led the way with 18 points, 17 rebounds, and three blocks, which led the team in each category. 

“Caitlyn is the heartbeat of this defense and when she plays well, everybody plays well.” Finch said.

 MACA’s next game will be at 5 p.m. at Heritage Academy on Friday, Dec. 13.