By Gabi Marrese
The Loggers women’s basketball team had a record breaking season. They finished with an overall record of 26-3, which broke the record for most wins in a single season for the team. This also set the best overall record in program history.
“I’m so impressed with all we did. From our coaches and trainers to the players and managers, even our fans, everyone out in 100%,” said sophomore Samone Jackson (Edmonds, Washington).
Those 26 wins included all 16 conference matchups. This adds a first solo Northwest Conference Championship title to their list of records this season. This earned the Loggers an at-large bid in the NCAA Division III Tournament and hosted the first and second round of the tournament.
The Loggers advanced to the second round after beating UC Santa Cruz. In the second round, they faced Whitman in a rematch of the Northwest Conference Tournament Final. Unfortunately the Loggers ended their season in a hard fought battle finishing 69-67 against the Blues.
“Our captains, Alexis Noren and Katie Holland played a big part is this memorable season. They kept us working hard as well as focused, but they were always coming up with the funniest jokes! I will truly miss them next year,” sophomore Meghan Hamel (Murrieta, California) said.
This year’s team welcomed nine new first-year students while only graduating two seniors.
“It is always difficult saying goodbye to seniors, as it inevitably changes the team dynamic. Both Alexis and Katie were tremendous leaders. The returners and newcomers will have big shoes to fill on and off the court,” said Head Coach and NWC Coach of the Year, Loree Payne.
In particular, senior Alexis Noren (Milwaukie, Oregon) had a strong finish to her last year as a Logger. She earned All- NWC First Team, All-West Region Third Team and scored her 1,000th career point as a Logger against UC Santa Cruz in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Noren finished the season averaging 12.4 points per game, while playing all 29 games and averaging 33 minutes per game. On the other side of the ball, she averaged almost three steals per game and three-and-a-half assists per game.
Along with Noren, five other teammates received Northwest Conference honors. Sophomore Samone Jackson (Edmonds, Washington) also received All-West Region Second Team honors. Jackson finished the season averaging 16.2 points per game and playing an average of 33 minutes in the 29 games of the season.
“It’s just that, an amazing honor. When you put in the amount of work that us athletes do, it’s great to be recognized. I like to remember that it’s not an individual sport, we rely a lot on each other. I can’t do my job if I don’t have tremendous athletes next to me doing theirs,” said Jackson.
After a well deserved spring break, the Loggers look toward the offseason to keep improving for the next season.
“For next year improving my fundamentals is always something I try to work on as well as getting stronger in the weight room, but as a team I think it is most important to continue to build our chemistry. Our team is fairly young so getting to know each other’s tendencies and strengths will only make our team better,” Hamel said.
The loss in the second round of the tournament helps these young players to see their potential after finishing the best season in program history. This gives them the motivation to work hard in hopes of improving from season to season.
“We were a very young team this year and in all honesty we will still be young again next year. I think a year of experience will definitely help in preparing for big moments heading into next season. I know the team is planning to work incredibly hard over the summer and we are all very excited about the potential of success next season,” Coach Payne said.
As the school year begins to comes to a close, another season is right around the corner.
“We will be back next year!! Stronger and even more hungry for another title!! Go Loggers,” said Jackson.