Even in today’s perimeter-oriented game, having a dominant post player sure helps. When you have a dominant post player and you have shooters around him or her, it’s a recipe for a ton of success.
#18 Washington-Liberty has a dominant post player in senior Eve Jungman. When they’re hitting from outside as a team like they were against rival Yorktown?
There’s going to be success.
Jungman scored 15 points and nine rebounds at Yorktown Thursday afternoon, and the Generals hit ten three-pointers and shot over 50% from beyond the arc to defeat the Patriots, 63-34.
15 points and nine rebounds may not sound dominant, but Jungman, who only played the first three quarters, constantly drew double teams and allowed her teammates to also get rebounds. More importantly the Dartmouth commit helped them to get open shots from long range.
“We decided yesterday we needed to make some shots,” said Horace “Buck” Willis, in his first year at the helm at W-L. “Our 2 and 3 haven’t been hitting shots in weeks, so we dedicated yesterday to getting up shots under the gun, individual shooting, and it showed.”
The Generals certainly made shots, especially in the first half. At halftime W-L led 42-18. Senior Hannah Kelley had a pair of threes in the first half, as did junior Kat Wagener and sophomore Dylan Plummer. Jungman, a good shooter as well, even added a three-pointer.
When the Generals weren’t making their shots, they were often getting second chances off offensive rebounds. Yorktown, a solid team, had no answer.
“Yorktown is good, man they’re really good,” said Willis. “They have [Olivia] Shiplett, who is also a monster to handle inside…we got Anna [Jungman, Eve’s sister] who jumped out on her…we defended well tonight.”
Shiplett and senior guard Eleanor Mahshie had seven points apiece for Yorktown (3-4, 7-7), but it wasn’t nearly enough against a Washington-Liberty team that was clicking on all cylinders Thursday. Wagener added six assists for the Generals, all in the first half, while finishing with 13 points. Kelley finished with ten points, and Plummer came off the bench to provide 11.
The Generals (6-1, 14-3) swept the season series from their rivals, winning the first contest 59-38 at home in December. Willis’ team sits a game behind Langley in the Liberty District. The Saxons handed W-L its only district loss of the season, 49-41, but the teams will battle again next week.
If the Generals’ inside-outside game is working near as well as it was Thursday, the outcome could very well be different.
–Chris Jollay