Jayden GoldsonN.C. Central’s Women’s Basketball team fell to Wofford in their home opener Saturday with a final score of 56-75.
Although the Lady Eagles failed to pick up the win, Eagle Head Coach Terrence Baxter said that the team gained valuable experience with more underclassmen composing the lineup.
“We got six freshmen and two sophomores that we brought in and they’re getting a chance to play right now,” Baxter said.
“A lot of teams in the nation, if you’re a freshman or sophomore, you don’t get many minutes right now, but ours are playing 15 to 20 minutes right now, so when conference games hit, they’re gonna be ready to go.”
Injuries have plagued the Eagles early this season, as multiple veteran players have been sidelined with various positions.
“My big dogs started being big dogs,” Baxter said. “Morgan and Kyla got going in the second half, and what they got to understand right now is we have eight returners. And we’ll have three of them on the floor because the other five are injured.”
Eagle guard Morgan Callahan, led all players in scoring, shooting an efficient 6-11 for 18 points.
“In the first half, nothing was really clicking,” Callahan said. “But I just stayed aggressive, and my teammates motivated me, and that’s a big thing for me.”
Callahan’s teammates also provided offensive relief. Eagle guard Kyla Bryant stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
NCCU guard Aysia Hinton posted career single-game highs in both points (15) and 3-Point shots made (5) since transferring back home from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.
Baxter urged his players to get to their spots quickly and shoot at higher volumes because when they enter a game not being aggressive, it trickles down to both offense and defense.
This aggressiveness will be necessary in future games against top 25 programs such as UNC Chapel Hill, Florida State and LSU.
“We got one of the tougher schedules, probably at our level of D-1 and I love it,” Baxter said. “We get to go play at all the big games, we get to go play all the big dogs, so when conference hits around, we ain’t got no excuses and be ready.”
The team motivates each other through their accomplishments and struggles, building on the strong sense of family that can be observed both on and off the court.
“We’re gonna go in and work on us,” Baxter said. “We can just go in there and play hard and get the experience we need to help us win this conference.”
The Lady Eagles will travel to Tallahassee, FL to play against Florida State on Nov 18.
