By Anthony Martinez, Sports Editor
The men and women’s basketball teams are about two-thirds of the way through the season. The season has brought about mixed results, some fantastic performances, and some heartbreaking losses.
Last season went splendid for the men’s team as they won the Sunshine State Conference Champion, finishing 7-1 on a seven-game winning streak. This season has not been as kind to the men as their record currently is just 8-9.
8-9 is by no means a poor record, and even in their losses, they have played very well. It seemed like they just couldn’t go on a long win streak, especially at the beginning of the season. It was a tit-for-tat, just a 5-4 record to start the year.
After the even start, they went on to lose four games in a row. This was by far the lowest point of the season. The first loss of that losing streak occurred in overtime, 93-96, to Cedarville University. This was a very disappointing loss. The only loss that wasn’t a tight game was the game against Barry University, 84-98, however, it was still competitive. Barry controlled the rebounding the entire game which led them to the win.
Recently, in the last two games, Saint Leo has come out on top in both encounters. First was against Florida Tech with a strong defensive performance of 78-61. The last game was extremely close from start through overtime with 87-85 against Eckerd College. The win was led by senior, Wade Coomer, who hit nine three-pointers and a total of 29 points to lead the Lions.
The Lions are building some momentum, led by some great performances, like the aforementioned light out shooting by Coomer. Overall, the Lions have four players averaging points over double digits, which was also led by Coomer at 16.1ppg.
Second in scoring, who had arguably the greatest performance by any Lion, was junior, Francis Sio. Against Barry in that loss, Sio had a 40-point performance. It was a remarkable performance in only thirty minutes where he also hit eight three-pointers.
Senior, Frank Weber, has been an all-around star this season, having several near triple-doubles throughout the season. Averaging over 13 points, over 7 rebounds a game, and over 6 assists a game, he did everything for the team.
Saint Leo has 10 remaining games in the regular season, and they have momentum. But, they’re going to have to keep building off it if they want a good placement in the Sunshine State Conference tournament.
Moving onto the women’s team, last season was only six games finishing with a 3-3 record. They played very well through their first 20 games of the season, holding a record 13-7.
After just starting 3-4 on the season, it was just somewhat of an average season up at that point. The Lions then went on to rattle off a five-game winning streak, making them one of the toughest in the conference.
It started on Dec. 4 against Embry-Riddle University in a dominant performance by the women winning 76-57. The rest of the win streak had some average wins, along with another dominant 35-point win against Lake Superior State. They also had some thrillers which they managed to win as well.
The win streak came to an end against Tampa University, 90-97 in overtime. Senior, Alex Button, had a great performance that night, scoring 25 points in a grueling 45 minutes of playtime. Included in the 25 points, she managed to hit five three-pointers that night as well.
After the disappointing loss, they went on another win streak. This one is smaller at three wins, but still important for the team regardless. They played great defense during this run, allowing just 60 points a game to opposing teams.
In the last two games, both at home, they split two games going 1-1. They played strong on Jan. 22, defeating Florida Tech 78-60. They then lost the biggest game all season long. On Jan. 26, they played against the 16th ranked Eckerd, where the Lions took the lead with just seconds to go. Eckerd then won the game on a buzzer-beater, sending everyone home defeated.
Still, the team has played very well and had some great performers this season as well with four players averaging over double digits in points like the men’s team. This has been led by junior, Amanda Ulrich. She averages 18.7 points a game and near 20 a game at the college level is outstanding. Her season-high came against Texas A&M International, where she scored 32 and hit five threes in the game as well.
Dominating the boards for the Lions is graduate student, Ayanna Trigg, who averages 8.1 rebounds. She does more than just rebound, however, as she also averages 12.3 points a game.
With just eight games left on the schedule, only three of which are at home, it will be tough. But the Lions would love to finish strong and make a push for a good spot in the Sunshine State Conference Champion.
Some incredible performances, some heartbreakers, and thrilling wins. Lions basketball from both teams has had it all this season. Both teams have so much talent and have the ability to make a run at a conference champion. We’ll just have to see what they manage to accomplish.
