Written by: Zachary Worstell (zdw001@marietta.edu)
The past few seasons the women’s basketball team at Marietta College have found themselves in the NCAA tournament in March. This season looks to be no different as new head coach Jenna Andersen has led the team to an impressive 10-4 record.
Andersen who graduated from Marietta in 2018 has been the team’s assistant head coach for the past few seasons. Former head coach Kole Vivian moved back to Wisconsin to coach Edgewood College. However, Andersen’s experience playing for the Pio’s including being the captain for the 2017-2018 season where the program won their first OAC championship and first NCAA tournament appearance assures that the Pioneers are in good hands.
The season started in November with a road matchup against Bethany College whom they defeated 78-47. The dominance on defense would be seen throughout the beginning of the season. Unfortunately, the Pios home opener did not go as good as the Pioneers lost 83-69 to Mount St. Joseph University. However, Marietta was able to pick up another win on the road outscoring Saint Vincent College 61-50.
Moving onto the Jim Meagle Classic, Marietta’s first game was moved to Vienna, West Virginia but were still able to defeat traveling Calvin University 57-44. For the second game of the invitational, Marietta headed back to the Ban Johnson arena and defeated Kenyon College 72-38.
Heading into December with a 4-1 record, Marietta continued their winning streak in a close game against Wilmington College. The final score was 81-77. However, their second OAC matchup of the year came as a 70-61 loss to John Carroll University.
For the last two games of the calendar year, Marietta scored a win over visiting Washington & Jefferson College 63-59, but lost on the road to Otterbein College 76-63.
The Pioneers came back into the new year prepared as they scored a win on the road beating Heidelberg University 79-58. This win was followed by a second conference victory at home. They won over the University of Mount Union 68-48.
While the next matchup was postponed due to the weather, Marietta went on to lose to Ohio Northern University 71-63. Although, in their final non-conference game of the season, the Pioneers were able to score a win in overtime. Case Western Reserve University kept up with the Pios keeping the game tied at the end of the third quarter. Both teams scored 18 points in the fourth and forced the game into overtime. However, Marietta started out hot in overtime and kept a large lead getting a 73-67 victory.
Marietta showcased both their offensive and defensive skills in their latest game as they defeated the Muskingum University Muskies 81-47. This win put the Pioneers at 4-3 in the OAC which is 5th overall in the conference. The Pios have an opportunity to improve this record as their schedule is only conference games for the rest of the season. Their next game comes on Saturday January 18th at 1:00 p.m. as they face Baldwin Wallace University on the road. Their next home game comes against Capital University on Wednesday January 22nd at 7:00 p.m. To support the Pios women’s basketball team they will continue their Wednesday, Saturday schedule for the rest of the season. So be sure to keep up with the team on Instagram at marietta_wbb or at pioneers.marietta.edu/sports/womens-basketball
