Men’s basketball season comes to an end while women prepare for CAC tournament

By THEODOSIUS ZOTOS

The University of Mary Washington men’s basketball team finished off their season with a 98-79 win over Wesley College last Saturday to end their season. After suffering four losses out of their last five games, the Eagles triumphed over the Wolverines to end their regular season with an overall record of 12-13 and a Capital Athletic Conference record of 8-10.

Junior forward Eric Shaw led his fellow teammates to the victory Saturday night with 28 points and nine total rebounds. The first half was relatively back-to-back competition and shots between each team, but the Eagles managed to maintain their lead throughout the first half and were up 46-39 going into halftime.

After halftime the game was filled with intensity, each team having the drive to end their last game of the regular season with a win. With standout performances from Shaw, John Lutkenhaus, Emerson Burk and Johnny Cronin, the Eagles managed to find themselves with a cushioned ending score of 98-79 sealing the win and capping off the season.

This game, being the final game of the season for the men’s team, was the final game in the UMW collegiate careers of Burk, Lutkenhaus and fellow senior Brent Mahoney.

The men’s team started off the season a strong 4-1, but despite the strong start, struggled to continue their success or completely re-grasp it. Of their 13 defeats during the season, seven of those losses came by five points or less. This goes to show the potential this program has, notably by how youthful it is, with captain and leading scorer Shaw, being the only rising senior for next season.

On the other hand, the University of Mary Washington women’s basketball team finished their regular season with a record of 22-3 and Capital Athletic Conference record of 15-3. The Eagles are set to enter the CAC tournament as the second seed with a semifinal matchup against the Marymount Saints on Thursday, Feb. 23.

The Eagles team ended their regular season on a positive note as well with a comfortable 66-41 win over the Wesley Wolverines.

Standout All-American candidate senior Brianne Comden led the Eagles Saturday night making 9-16 shots from the field and scoring a total of 22 points. In addition, Megan Greene, Elizabeth Dofflemyer and Taylor Barton all had outstanding performances as well.

The Eagles battled it out against the Wolverines throughout all four quarters but maintained a sizeable lead throughout. The first half however was rough for both teams to put points on the board leading to a low scoring first half of 28-15, the Eagles being on top before the start of the second. Although momentums switched due to various scoring drives, such as Comden’s nine point third quarter, the game eventually came to a victorious halt capping off the Eagles’ regular season.

If the ladies are to win their matchup against Marymount University, who defeated Salisbury Seagulls 58-44 to advance to the semifinal game on Thursday, they will be set to take the court on Saturday, Feb. 25 to compete for the CAC Tournament Championship against the winner of CNU and York.

The No. 20 ranked Eagles will look to win the CAC Tournament championship, with the intent of an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. If the Eagles lose during the tournament, they will have their fingers crossed for an at-large bid during the NCAA Tournamentselection show on Sunday, Feb. 26.

The Eagles’ semifinal game against Marymount is at 7 p.m. in the Ron Rosner Arena on Thursday, Feb. 23 and is a white-out, as the Eagles will hope to take full advantage of home court in this pivotal playoff game.