By Zach Waltz
Sports Assignment Editor
The women’s basketball team is now 4-2 in conference play, putting them in fifth place in the Atlantic 10.
Bonnies fans have much to be hopeful for, as this year’s young team has shown a lot of potential in every aspect of the game.
Sophomore forward Katie Healy is fifth in scoring and rebounding in the A-10 and third in blocks. She is also 11th in field goal percentage. Sophomore forward Hannah Little is fourth in the A-10 in offensive rebounds. Senior forward Chelsea Bowker is sixth in three pointers made. She is also tied for ninth in three-point percentage, while sophomore guard Nyla Rueter is fifth. Meanwhile, no Bonnie is in the top 10 for minutes per game.
Freshman forward Gabby Richmond has started all six conference games while averaging nine points and four rebounds. Rueter has stepped up her performance in A-10 play, going from averaging 10 points and .414 from three point range to nearly 13 points and .500 from three-point range.
Sophomore guard Emily Michael leads the team in minutes per game. As the primary point guard, Michael leads the team in assists. Little serves as the team’s sixth woman and provides as a steady rebounder and scorer. Healy, Rueter and Michael scored career highs in points in consecutive games against La Salle, St. Louis and Rhode Island, respectively.
The team has shown they can compete at a high level in the A-10. After beating the favored La Salle Explorers by 23 points and holding them to just 35 points, the Bonnies faced the St. Louis Billikens, who were 0-3 in conference play. The Billikens came at the Bonnies with quite the display of shooting, yet the Bonnies held them off and came back to win 62-60.
The Bonnies are 3-0 at home in conference play and have only lost once at home all year, solidifying the thought the Reilly Center gives the team a major boost in performance. However, the team is only 8-5 on the road.
The team won 63-55 with a wire-to-wire lead against the Rhode Island Rams on Wednesday. Michael and Bowker led the Bonnies with 14 each. Michael was 3-3 on field goals, including 2-2 on three pointers. Little led the team with six rebounds, and Healy topped the Bonnies with seven assists. Little and Healy added 10 and 13 points, respectively.
The Bonnies will head to Richmond tomorrow to take. The Spiders are 3-3 in A10 play this year.
While the Bonnies have put together a good season thus far, they can only get better as their young players gain experience and confidence. The sophomore class has really stepped up to fill the void of junior-year players.
With the senior leadership of Bowker and the young potential stemming from the sophomore and freshmen classes, this team can continue to perform at a high level this year in the A-10.
waltzzd12@bonaventure.edu
