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Photos: Julia Piotrowicz
York Women suffer a devastating 24-71 defeat at the hands of a extraordinary Lancaster side.
The Main Hall was buzzing with the sounds of a legion of Lancaster fans in the early morning matchup that proved to be more than York could handle. From the very beginning, it was clear that our team would be overpowered and outmaneuvered by our much more experienced counterparts.
The first quarter gave Lancaster an early 17-point lead that set the tone for the rest of the game. They kept possession for the majority of the quarter, denying York any contact. Even when we did on occasion transition to offense, Lancaster exploited our poor handling and passing for quick steals and easy layups.
Although York faired better in the second quarter, outscoring their opponents 8-7, it hardly made a dent in their deficit. Rachael Cryer showed a tremendous amount of hustle and aggression, successfully taking advantage of fast breaks and penetrating Lancaster’s defenses better than anyone else. Unfortunately, the 18-34 deficit at halftime seemed insurmountable at this stage.
The rest of the game followed a similar pattern to the first quarter, and York soon fell far behind, only scoring a total of 6 points in the second half while Lancaster scored 37.
Yet, no one watching the game could say York were lazy or unmotivated. On the contrary, they showed just as much passion and drive as the other team. The difference, as Lancaster coach Steve Rutt later correctly observed, was leadership
Throughout the second half, York racked up quite a number of steals and rebounds, particularly on the part of the very quick Gilly Jago, but there was no follow-through. At times, they would attempt a LeBron-Wade-inspired dual fast break but fail to make the layup. At other times, they would negate their steals with avoidable mistakes like backcourt violations and poorly lobbed passes over the entire opposition.
Meanwhile, Lancaster’s two point guards, Jacky and Damla, both single-handedly outscored the entire York team. They were confident with their long-range shots, making York’s zone defense in the paint useless, and remarkably agile within the 3-point line. After the game, Janne Billiet explained that the reason the opposition won was because they were able to single out York’s weak passing and use that to their advantage.
This was an embarrassing reminder that teams that have the potential to be good—great, even—are left to their own devices. What York lacks aren’t players who are motivated and ready to put in time and effort. What we lack is an effective training programme with coaches who have both the technical knowledge of the sport and the ability to teach it. How can we expect to improve our teams if we don’t have the expertise to do so? After all, Lancaster lost to York last year.
The difference was they went out and found themselves someone to teach them, train them, and work with them for a year, and the result is undeniable. Until we address this fundamental issue, York basketball will not reach its full potential.