The 19th we traveled to Minot Ryan. I’m generally hesitant to go to Ryan for a few reasons. Most of those reasons are colored by a high school kids memories of his opponent…so I had hoped for the best. We took off pretty early for the game and ended up getting there an hour early. I wasn’t sure if there was any road construction…there wasn’t, and I wasn’t sure about the road conditions…they were fine.
The 7th grade did not do very well. They struggled against westhope as well (which was kind of a tough game to decide. We could have gone with the 8th grade…but they’d have far over matched westhope. I had hoped the 7th would fair a little better than they did). I think the 7th were pretty much done with their season after the TGU game. I understand how it was difficult for them to get amped up for each game. They were very competative and right there in several games…but they just didn’t break in to that win column. That had to be hard on the girls.
I had high hopes for the 8th grade team. We had done very well against these girls in Bottineau, so I didn’t think there would be a whole lot of difference in Minot. Out of the gate we didn’t do to` o bad…but we couldn’t pull away. In the 2nd quarter they pulled a head by a point or two. My girls started struggling with the little things, passing angles was the biggest one. They kept tryint to feed the post from the top of the key. My point would pick up her dribble between the 1/2 line and the top of the key. I’m not really sure why. The officiating wasn’t good either…I hate to get into a position where I’m blaming the officials for a loss. I’m not really…but so much of our game is built on bodying up underneith and slashing the lane…when that aspect is taken away due to lack of calls it is difficult for the girls to adjust mentally. It’s something they will have to learn to adjust to as they get older.
The second half went down hill for the ladies. It seems like when a few things go against them the girls start to get timid and hesitant…they begin to doubt themselves and their training. One of the big things that I get on them about during times like these is when they stop on a play. Instead of going after the ball or trying to make up for their error, they will make a mistake…get mad, make a face or throw their arms up…and not tear after the ball and try to get it back. That’s a bit of mental training that needs to be addressed.
We ended up on the wrong end of a 6 point gap…and couldn’t seem to make up the difference. I started subbing in players that do not get much time, so they could have time. It was clear we wouldn’t catch up.
We have a couple of games left, but both of them are after christmas. My starters are going to be practicing with the high school from the 26th on, so I won’t have a practice with my group now at all. I’m not thrilled about this, but we’ll see how well they handle it. Hopefully those 5 practicing with the older girls will do them some good. They are on top of the pile in practice at their age group…having to work harder and not being the top dogs, I think, will make them better players.