Titans Women’s Basketball look ahead after big win
Written by WZND Newsroom on March 3, 2022
Image courtesy of Kodiak Creative
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Illinois Wesleyan Women’s Basketball team was in a position they did not expect themselves to be in this past weekend.
“One of the breaking points [of our season] was halftime of our Washington University game. So that point we were 1-3, we had a tough loss from the night before, we’re down by 22 at the half, we’re in the locker room like this can go one of two ways-we can lose by 40,” said Assistant Coach Brian Ehresman. “Or we can win this game.”
After a few adjustments in mindset and gameplay, the Titans were able to turn around their season, culminating in a CCIW 2022 Conference Tournament Championship last weekend.
“It was just awesome how we could come together at the end and you know, get that win and that bid into [the NCAA Division 3 Championships], “ said Catie Eck, a senior forward for the Titans.
Ehresman points to the team’s variety of in-house talent as a key factor in the team’s turnaround.
“With a young team, we have three freshmen who play a lot as well. So kind of getting the mixture of seniors and juniors with our young kids was helpful, “ said Ehresman.
Eck herself has been showing her own talent, and really throughout her career at IWU, as she’s currently tied for the IWU WBB career blocks record at 83 career blocks, including 41 during this season alone.
Individual accolades are nice, of course, but Eck also appreciates the team’s improved chemistry and includes that as a reason for the turnaround.
“We like to hang out, joke around, especially off the court, so I think our team chemistry this year might be our secret, “ said Eck.
Even with the success, The IWU Titans are not satisfied with simply winning the CCIW Tournament. While most teams repeat the old adage of “one game at a time,” Ehresman is thinking about the team’s future goals a little differently.
“I think about it as weekends at a time- I would love to survive for another weekend, and have another week of practice, and do that same thing for three weeks,” said Ehresman.
