All season, Ohio has been short on options for its lineup. It has one of the smallest benches in the Mid-American Conference due to injury, and it even had to finish its game against Northern Illinois last Sunday with only four players. Ohio simply cannot afford any more problems.
But, there’s no telling what will happen — especially when a starter goes down.
The Bobcats (11-9, 5-6 MAC) were without Cece Hooks in their 80-73 loss to Western Michigan on Saturday. They needed someone to step up and take over her role, and a handful of underclassmen did just that. Madi Mace tied her career-high with 17 points and went 8-of-8 from the free throw line, while Yaya Felder tied her career-high with 16 points.
Mace has been a pillar of Ohio’s starting lineup all season. She starts alongside four of Ohio’s most veteran players, but Mace is only a redshirt freshman. Last season, Mace earned a starting role in the back half of the year due to injuries within Ohio’s team. However, she came off the bench more often than not.
Since becoming a regular starter, Mace has stepped into her own. She has scored more than 10 points in eight games this season. But it's not just Mace’s scoring that earns her a starting spot. She’s one of the best defenders on the Bobcats roster because of her consistent rebounding ability.
Felder, on the other hand, is a true freshman. She has taken over Mace’s role as the sixth man and substitute, should injuries crop up. Felder was thrown into the fire early this season. She started in her first game in late November. Since then, she has started six times.
“It's been rough, in the beginning, trying to keep up with (the upperclassmen),” Felder said. “But now I’m getting it.”
Felder has learned on the fly from Ohio’s best. Each time she is on the court, she shows visible improvement. The freshman is third on the team for total assists and blocks. Felder is also quick on her feet and has an innate ability to steal the ball. She matched her career high of five steals against Western Michigan and is behind only Hooks and Erica Johnson for total steals on the year.
However, with age comes growing pains.
Mace and Felder tied Western Michigan’s Taylor Williams for the most turnovers on Saturday. They each turned the ball over six times. For Felder and Mace, that’s the most turnovers they’ve ever recorded in a game.
It's not the best thing for a struggling defense to have to recover from turnovers, and Ohio knows that. However, it understands that these things happen. Felder and Mace still have a long way to go.
“Whether it's those guys that are young, or Erica, Gabby, Cece, those guys that have been here so long, you just try to coach all of them and try to get all of them better,” Ohio coach Bob Boldon said.
Boldon appreciates his younger players and sees them getting better with every start. He knows that they are the future of the program, and moments like Saturday will better prepare them for games to come. Felder and Mace’s ability to step up when their names are called shows promise.
The two have been thrown into tough situations, but they don’t crack under pressure. Felder and Mace are the future of the program, and if they continue to improve, Ohio’s future will be bright.
