Shooting struggles doom Dolphin women at home

Photo by Wilson Tsoi

By Drew Raher

Bellevue College used 54% shooting in the second half to run away 83-31 on Wednesday night as the Dolphins could not muster much on the offensive end. The Bulldogs started the game on a 22-2 run as Bellevue built a comfortable cushion midway through the opening half. The Dolphins would respond though as Magen Lloyd (Fr, Salt Lake City, UT) came off the bench to score six of the first eight points for Shoreline in the contest. Lloyd would add four rebounds to spark the Dolphins, while fellow freshman Cecilee Fernandez (Fr, Renton, WA) added four points in only seven minutes off the Shoreline bench.

Bellevue was led by their dynamic front court duo of Jori Hall and Alexis Berrysmith who combined to score 22 points and 11 rebounds in the first period. The two post players were recipients of timely passes and a flurry of paint catches. The Bulldogs finished the first half shooting at a 34% clip, while the Dolphins had trouble finding any rhythm offensively en route to 16% shooting from the floor.

The second half opened the same way the first half began with the Bulldogs scoring in bunches as Bellevue scored the first 14 points of the period. Kaitlynn Bunger could not miss coming out of the locker room as she tallied 17 of her game high 19 points in the second half.

The Dolphins would continue to fight as the game neared completion. Hannah Stanger (So, Murtaugh, ID) and Chelsea Padgett (So, Johnston, SC) came off the bench for the Dolphins to score six points each and contribute to the swarming defense that Shoreline finished the game with. 

Bellevue controlled the second half from start to finish as the Dolphins were stymied on the offensive end mostly due to Shoreline’s inability to control the basketball. The Dolphins were plagued by 28 turnovers, which limited their chances even more to earn quality looks at the basket. The other difference was ball movement. Bellevue finished with 20 assists for their 34 total buckets, while Shoreline could only manage to dish out seven assists.

The Bulldogs were led by Bunger’s season high 19 points. Berrysmith and Hall cooled off in the second half as they sat for the majority of the half finishing with 14 and 12 points respectively. 

Shoreline’s Fernandez paved the way with a team-high eight points, going perfect from the charity stripe. Lloyd and Padgett chipped in six points apiece. Justice Perry (Fr, Skyway, WA) led the charge in rebounding with 9 boards, four of those coming on the offensive end. Bianca Benavides (So, Tukwila, WA) dished out two assists and played a solid all-around game from the point guard position.

Shoreline Community College (4-14, 2-7) will look to right the ship on the road when they travel to face Olympic College Saturday February 8th. The two teams met previously on January 11th and it was a nail-biter of a game. Olympic College escaped with an 85-81 victory in triple OT.

Stat of the Night: Cecilee Fernandez scored a season-high 8 points to lead the way for the Dolphins and added energy off the bench, a quality she typically provides for Shoreline each game.

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