The MATC Stormers women’s basketball team trounced the Rochester Community and Technical College Yellowjackets by a score of 97-66 during the Stormers’ home opener on Saturday, Nov. 16. The victory improved their record to 6-1.
Fouls, turnovers and an inability to find the basket put MATC in an early deficit as they fell behind Rochester. The Yellowjackets led 17-11, anchored by the dominant play of center Rachel Doll, who scored 10 points and collected 11 rebounds during the first half. However the Stormers came thundering back by disrupting the Yellowjackets’ passing lanes. Regarding his team’s ability to work its way back into the game, MATC Head Coach Jeff Lorenz said, “We switched our defense up and played to our strengths.” In short time they found themselves in the lead, 27-17.
Stormers guard Shonnice Vaughn’s exuberant play energized the home crowd by getting directly in the face of Yellowjacket ball handlers, a move they were not prepared for. The heavy pressure ball hawking lead to steals, which lead to transition layups for the Stormers. Once on top they never let up. Vaughn nailed a very long distance three-point heave to beat the halftime buzzer, increasing the lead to 20 as the Stormers entered the break up 47-27.
The aggressive play continued in the second half but resulted in injuries to Vaughn and Benetta Jones, MATC guard. “As I went up for the shot, she (the opposing player) boxed me out and knocked the wind out of me so I was having trouble breathing,” Jones stated after the game. Both her and Vaughn missed significant minutes in the second half but the team, and its lead, were bolstered by the hot hand of guard Ashley McHenry, who finished with a game-high 28 points.
McHenry credited the entire team for the win. “We got the W because we played as a team. Nobody was selfish. We passed the ball. We played good defense,” McHenry said. She also likes the team’s prospects going forward. “As long as we play like that, we’re going to be champions.”