Ethan Smith
Sports Editor
The 5-3 Cyclones came into this game riding a 4-game winning streak ready to play the Joliet Junior College Wolves. There was a clear advantage before the game even started when only eight players came dressed forthe Wolves in the Cyclone Center while Coach Jones had his full 16 players at his disposal.
The first quarter was a foul fest for Moraine. Starting Forward Nicole Poole was the one most affected by the whistles being blown. Jones was forced to pull her out of the game early.
Even with Poole missing for the vast majority of the first half, Moraine still possessed a 34-30 lead heading into half-time.
When asked about that before heading with his team to halftime, Jones wasn’t very pleased with how the game was being called.
“She is our inside defender. She has been taking care of business all year, leading our team in blocked shots. Our leading rebounder [is] out [of] the game with nine minutes left in the first quarter. That’s ridiculous!”
When the second half got under way, the game of attrition was on. Moraine came out with a full court press the remainder of the game in an attempt to wear out the Wolves.
The Wolves played hard and hung in tough behind Kike Ojo’s passion-filled performance.
Still, the Wolves defense couldn’t stop Diamond Dutch – who had a double digit scoring output and was in control of the offensive tempo throughout the night – and her teammates from securing Moriane’s fifth straight win, getting the Cyclones to 6-3 record for the year thus far, winning 73-67 at the Cyclone Center.
Ethan Smith is our new Sports Editor. This is his first article for The Glacier. He can be contacted at smithe325@student.morainevalley.edu
