By Nathan Deen
Published on February 13, 2008
After three straight losses, the PJC women’s basketball team has fallen behind in the conference race with a record of 4-7. Head coach Chanda Rigby isn’t worried about that right now, however. Rigby said that the Lady Pirates are only focused about winning their last four games. If they are able to do that, they may be able to qualify for the state tournament, although their chances are slim and they will need a lot of help.
Winning their final four games won’t be easy though. In fact, PJC is about to play its toughest stretch yet of the conference schedule. They’ll have to face in succession Okaloosa Walton, Chipola, Gulf Coast, and Tallahassee, each of whom have already defeated the Lady Pirates this season.
As with the men’s team, Rigby is trying to get her team to improve on certain game trends that have repeatedly hurt their chances of winning. Rigby said that her team is giving the maximum effort on defense, but are struggling to score on offense. She said that her team is going through too many scoring droughts.
“This league is too good for you to go long stretches without scoring,” Rigby said.
Also like the men’s team, the women’s team had a good chance to pull a big upset over Chipola on Feb. 5 but came up a little short. The improved play, Rigby said, should give her team more confidence for their next game at home against Okaloosa Walton.
A rising star may be developing in Angelese Hunter who Rigby decided to start three weeks ago and has played well in every game since. Hunter scored 18 points against Chipola and had a double-double, 10 points and 11 rebounds in the game against Tallahasse.
Sophomore leader Victoria Hunt has also played well recently; she scored 21 points against Chipola.
Wednesday’s game against Okaloosa Walton could be a pivotal placement game, as a win would put PJC tied with the Lady Raiders in the conference.
