PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland — Tuesday's home victory against Division II Virginia Union was a cleansing one for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. With a daunting nonconference schedule in full swing for the young squad any win — especially at home can provide a needed boost.
But on Wednesday (Nov. 30) the Hawks turned their attention to their third opponent in an eight-day span — The United States Naval Academy. The Mids are coming off a 98-84 loss to Idaho in their own tournament and boast two scorers who average double digits.
Junior forward Sydne Watts is coming off a 33-point game and averages 17.1 points per game, while freshman guard Maren Lauridis is putting up 14.9 points and 4.4 rebounds a contest.
"It's going to be tough and we are on the road," Hawks coach Fred Batchelor said. "For us it's still about continuing to learn and the biggest thing we have to continue to focus on is giving a maximum effort. I think we need to understand individual sacrifices for our teammates to develop the type of chemistry and synergy that we are going to need to be successful as a team and I think that is what we are learning to do. I like the way they responded to the adjustments that we made Tuesday."
Those adjustments were to the starting lineup and that seemed to change the whole dynamic of the game because of what Batchelor was able to bring off the bench and how the pieces fit together.
The Hawks started freshman Jála Bannerman (Baltimore, Maryland), sophomore Lesley Thomas (Browns Summit, North Carolina), freshman Lainey Allen (Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania) and redshirt junior Makayla Adams (Bowie, Maryland) alongside regular starter Mya Thomas (Chesapeake, Virginia).
Batchelor plans to go with the same five starters at Navy.
Bannerman's play against the Panthers was one of the keys to the win along with that of Ariana Seawell (Bronx, New York) and Mahogany Lester (Virginia Beach, Virginia) off the bench.
Another freshman who left the starting lineup is Ashanti Lynch (Hookerton, North Carolina) who has done a little bit of everything for the Hawks this season and will still do so in a reserve role. She finished last game with six points, seven rebounds and assist and a steal in 23 minutes off the bench.
"When you think about the expectations of a freshman starting and what you need from her — she's not there yet," Batchelor said. "But what she can give you as a freshman can be pretty big, so we have to learn how to get what we can out of these young players, while we develop them even further. I was pleased with how she played the last game because she had a couple of rough games and this was good for her confidence."
