By Jeremy McDonald
Jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
SALEM, Ore.– The Chemeketa Community College Women’s Basketball program have been on a tear to start the season.
Through 13 games, the Storm are 11-2 on the year, they’re ranked sixth in the most recent NWAC Rankings on December 17 and are riding some positive momentum going with the NWAC South Region play starting on Wednesday for the Salem-squad.
“It just shows that we worked hard in the preseason. Before the game starts and everything, we worked hard, we’re all disciplined. We went out there our first few games like we wanted it, we wanted to win. Especially us sophomores, we want to show the NWAC and everyone else that we deserve to be ranked at all,” said West Salem-grad Mady Diaz. “Our region is super hard, but I feel like we can improve and show the other teams that we can compete with them.”
They’ve been on themselves the whole time and the whole preseason. They are driven to reach the NWAC Playoffs this year after finishing tied for fifth with Portland Community College at 10-6, finishing a game behind Clackamas who took the fourth-and-final bid out of the traditionally tough NWAC South Region last season.
“We’re on ourselves the whole time. The whole preseason, we need to get into the gym, we need to do it. We don’t want to have what happened last year happen to us again this year where we missed it by a game,” said Yakima Nation-grad Bree Peters. “Putting up the extra shots, being communicative with each other, hanging out and having a really good team strong chemistry is going to get us through the season through the South Region of NWAC’s.”
Country Christian-Grad Annie Bafford leads the team in points per game (13.9) and rebounds per game (7.4) and Diaz is the other Chemeketa player averaging in double-figures in points at 10.9 to go with 2.8 assists a game. Peters leads the team with three assists a game and Sadie Snyder leads the team in steals per game at 2.5.
Now in front of them will be one of their toughest challenges of the Region, and the season as a whole: Umpqua Community College. The Riverhawks finished second in the NWAC to Lane, another NWAC South Region team, in the Championship Game as the Storm will look to use this preseason to propel them into the conference slate in front of them.
Chemeketa will return home Saturday when they host Southwestern Oregon Community College for a 2pm game.
Photos By Jeremy McDonald
