Windsor a good bet to extend season in NCS tournament
The Windsor Lady Jaguars are alive and well in their quest for a North Coast Section playoff bid, gaining a critical split in their remaining league games to maintain eligibility.
The Jags (6-8, 12-14) began the final week of North Bay League action with a Feb. 7 trip to unbeaten Cardinal Newman, playing the nationally ranked Cardinals tough before falling 66-41. Windsor needed a win over Ukiah in the Feb. 9 league finale against visiting Ukiah and was up to the task, scoring a 51-32 victory over the Wildcats on Senior Night.
The win gave the Lady Jaguars an even .500 record within Division 2, a key criteria for NCS playoff eligibility. As of press time, Windsor was ranked number 10 among NCS Division 2 teams. The NCS playoff selection committee will meet on Feb. 19 to fill out the 16-team Division 2 bracket.
Jags close out league
Victories come in many forms, and the Jags’ Feb. 7 rematch at Cardinal Newman may have been one of them. After suffering a 56-17 blowout at the hands of the Cardinals in their first meeting in January, Windsor turned in an outstanding showing this time around.
Windsor kept pace with the potent Newman attack, matching each Cardinal’s surge to trail 20-14 at the end of one. The Jag’s defense continued to throttle Newman in the second, holding them to 12 points to stay within striking distance at 32-23 at the half.
Cardinal Newman put an end to any Windsor upset hopes in the decisive third quarter, mounting a 20-8 run that would effectively put the game on ice. The Cardinals led 52-31 after three en route to a 66-41 win.
“Our match-up zone defense caused problems for the Cardinals throughout the night, slowing their potent offense,” Jags’ head coach Jeff Paul said later, while citing Windsor’s 45.2 shooting percentage. “It was a great team effort, we played hard and played together to turn in our best shooting outing of the season.”
Top point-producers for Windsor included junior guard Hannah May (11 points, 5 rebounds), junior center Gabby Giddings (11 points, 8 boards) and Mattie Murphy (6 points, 4 rebounds).
The Lady Jags had plenty of motivation when they took the court in the Feb. 9 NBL finale against visiting Ukiah, looking to avenge a 57-44 loss to the Wildcats in their first season meeting in January.
This night would belong to the Jaguars, utilizing a suffocating defensive effort to hold Ukiah to a total of eight points in the first half to grab a 28-8 lead at the break. The Wildcats clawed back in the third to score the first eight points of the period, but 12 points was as close as Ukiah would get the rest of the way as Windsor cruised to an eventual 51-32 rout.
May and Giddings (6 rebounds) paced the attack with 16 points. Other top scorers included Murphy (8 points, 9 rebounds), Cecellia Smith (6 points, 3 assists), Jackie Vierya (3 points) and Tori Russotti (2 points, 7 rebounds).
Windsor shot 50 percent from the floor, one of their best offensive nights of the season.
