Since starting 2013 with a road win against Xavier, the Ohio women’s basketball team has yet to find its way back into the win column amid an array of difficulties.
The Bobcats (5-15, 0-8 Mid-American Conference) are one of just two teams that remain winless in MAC play. The other is Northern Illinois, which is scheduled to enter The Convo on Wednesday to end one of the teams’ winless streaks.
At one moment, five of the team’s 13 players were out for injury, forcing Ohio to add a pair of walk-ons to the roster that had not played basketball competitively since high school.
The Bobcats have lost five games by at least 26 points and most recently, blew a 16-point lead in the second half Sunday in a loss against Kent State — giving the Golden Flashes just their third win of the season.
“We were all pretty heartbroken to play that hard for 30-35 minutes and let the last five slip away from us,” senior guard Ashley Fowler said. “But we are on our way and aren’t going to let (the Kent State) loss hold us back.”
Despite battling adversity game in and out during the first half of their MAC schedule, the Bobcats are beginning to regain their stride from December, when the team won three consecutive games before encountering injuries.
Through the first 36 minutes of play Sunday, Ohio did not trail, as the Bobcats were playing their most well-rounded game since winning at Xavier.
Even though the Bobcats lost the lead late, they were able to battle back and take a four-point lead with 30 seconds remaining but ended up losing by two points to the Golden Flashes.
Ohio coach Semeka Randall blamed the loss on herself, but though losing an eighth consecutive game is disappointing, Ohio was competitive for the first time in a month.
“Players in the moment get excited down the stretch, and there was some miscommunication, and we didn’t use the clock to our advantage,” Randall said.
“I take the full responsibility and blame for the loss; it’s not those kids’ fault.”
Optimism seems to be surrounding the team, as senior forward Symone Lyles said in practice last week, the recent losses are not what embody the Bobcats.
“We’re going to shock people, because when we get everybody back healthy and our team playing how we had it at the beginning of the year when we beat Xavier, that’s when we’re really going to come together,” Lyles said. “We’re going to show people that this is not our team right now.”
The Bobcats have eight games remaining in the regular season, including five against teams with losing records. With a rejuvenated roster and the offense beginning to wake up, it would not be a shocker if Ohio can string together a winning streak before season’s end.
cl027410@ohiou.edu
