"Offensively challenged" could best describe the tilt between the Elphinstone Cougars and Chatelech Eagles on Monday in Gibsons.
Neither team had a brilliant shooting game, but the Elphi senior girls had enough in the end to fend off the Eagles, winning 52-39 for the Cougars' second win in as many weeks over their Sunshine Coast rivals.
The first quarter was decent shooting-wise as Elphi led 18-12 after the first 10 minutes. But defence, turnovers and poor shot selection by both teams told the story for the remainder of the game.
Elphi led 30-18 at half and 46-31 after three quarters.
The fourth quarter was very low scoring, with Chat holding an 8-6 scoring advantage. It was well over six minutes into the quarter before one team scored.
Chat showed a bit of fight in the end, cutting a 20-point Elphi lead down to 13, but they just ran out of time.
Sammi Dixon led the Eagles in scoring with 13 points while Amanda Lynch had eight.
Elphi was led by Danie Proby's 22 points and 12 points from Kyla Scherer.
"I thought it was quite a scrappy game, but a win is a win," said Elphi coach Lynn Moran. "Chat played a much better game than the last time we played them. I'm not totally pleased with our effort. We played a zone defence, and the idea of zone is winning the battle on the boards. We didn't get a lot of offensive rebounds and we had a lot of turnovers. Those are both areas we need to improve on."
Elphi was scheduled to play Tuesday night in North Vancouver against St. Thomas Aquinas, but had to cancel the game due to provincial exams at the school.
Elphi has league games on Feb. 3 and 7 in North Van against Windsor and a home game Feb. 10 against Collingwood.
Chat coach Ellen Thomas said her team showed improvement in some areas but admitted her team still has to do more to be successful.
"We've been focusing on our shooting and running offensive plays and it's coming along," Thomas said. "In the win last week against Rockridge, and even in this game, I saw improvements. Players are starting to think on their feet; they're making adjustments on their own and making better choices on the floor. I think we're making progress, but it's just not quite there yet."
The Chatelech senior boys picked up a big win over Sutherland last Thursday to remain undefeated in North Shore league play.
Chat beat Sutherland 94-80 in an entertaining contest in North Vancouver.
The game was close all the way until midway through the fourth quarter, when Chat went on a late run to win by 14.
Devan Haynes led the way for Chat with 34 points while Matt Skei chipped in with 20.
Chat is off for two weeks because of provincial exams. Chat resumes play on Feb. 4 with a weekend tournament at High Road Academy.
On Monday, Feb. 7, Chat hosts Elphinstone in league play, then has road games Tuesday through Thursday against Windsor, St. Thomas Aquinas and Collingwood to wrap up league play.
"It's going to be a challenge for the boys to stay mentally focused as well as in physical condition," said head coach Bruce Haynes. "Playing well at the tournament is important, but the four games in four nights will be our toughest test this year."
The Elphi boys had their game against Sutherland (Jan. 18) re-scheduled until Feb. 15 due to provincial exams.
