By Maegan Green
The Lady Blazers came out strong in their season opening home game against Randolph College. The final score was 52 – 49 in the non-conference match up.
The Blazers performed exceptionally well defensively, holding the Wildcats to just 18 points in the first half of the game. Hood’s defense caused the Wildcats to turn the ball 22 times total.
This game consisted of a lot of firsts for the Blazers. It is the first season-opening victory for Hood since Jack Mehl took over as head coach last season. It also marks the first game played in the college career of the 10 freshmen on the roster. “We have 17 players this season,” said Mehl. “We have 10 freshman, one sophomore transfer student, and three seniors,” he added.
One of Mehl’s goals this season is to help first-year players adjust. “They play very well together overall,” said Mehl. “It is going to be a challenge trying to figure out the best rotation for all of the players in each game. From my standpoint, with having a large roster, it is going to take a while to figure out how to take advantage of all of the players,” he added.
The team has evolved tremendously in the last two seasons. Prior to Mehl becoming the head coach, there were once just six players on the roster. He plays a big role in recruiting. “I go to high school games and talk to players,” said Mehl. He is the reason why many first-year students chose to come to Hood.
“Coach Mehl is the reason I came to Hood,” said first-year Arianna Delerme. “He came to my high school to watch me play. He was really nice,” she added. Coaches from many other schools had spoken to Delerme. “Other coaches were loud and weren’t that fun to talk to. Coach Mehl was cool. And really funny too,” she added.
The Blazers are undergoing a lot of changes this season. “This season is a foundation for building,” said Mehl. In addition to having several new players, they are working on establishing a different playing style.
“We are trying to play faster and more up tempo this year,” said Mehl. “We are also going to try to run a less structured offense. Our offense is going to run more of a read and react,” he added.
The Blazers have a tough schedule ahead of them. They are in a new conference this season. The MAC is more competitive and has more schools competing in comparison to the CAC, Hood’s previous conference. “We won six games last year and this season, we are not facing any of those opponents,” said Mehl.
In the season-opener, Dyanna Prater (’13) led the Blazers in scoring, with 10 points. She also had two steals and five assists. Rachel Wiley (’16) came up with three blocks.
Briana Lee (’15) scored seven points. Rachel Kessler (’16) made all three of her free throw attempts and Emily Maerz (’13) was two for two at the free throw line. Shakara Head (’16) lead the Blazers in rebounds, with a total of 12.
Hood is set to play in North Carolina against Wesleyan at the Methodist Tournament on November 24th.
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