By Sydney LoPresti, Staff Writer
The men’s and women’s basketball teams continued their march towards the Centennial Conference playoffs in recent play. The men split their games evenly, beating Muhlenberg 63-48 on Tuesday, Jan. 25 and then again on Saturday, Jan. 29 by a score of 73-57, but then suffering closes loses vs. Washington College on Jan. 22 by a score of 63-70 and another on Jan. 27 against No. 12 Johns Hopkins by a score of 57-67. The women, on the other hand, rolled past their three opponents this week, remaining undefeated in the Centennial. They were able to top Washington College on the 22nd (70-61), Bryn Mawr on the 27th (73-34), and Muhlenberg on the 29th (68-35).
Senior Avery Close led the Bullets in scoring during their attempted comeback against Washington College. Despite starting slowly, he and Elijah Williams ’23 combined for 41 points as Gettysburg looked to cut down the lead the Shoremen had created for themselves in the first half.
Close continued his hot streak in their victory against Muhlenberg. He contributed 18 points, nine rebounds, and two assists to their 15 point win over their Centennial Conference foe. However, it was a team-wide effort as the Bullets held the Mules to their lowest shooting percentage on the season. This was the seventh time the Bullets have held an opponent to under 40 percent from the field.
Close and Carl Schaller ’25 combined for 35 of the team’s 57 points scored against a tough opponent in twelfth ranked Johns Hopkins. Once again, the Bullets held their opponent to one of their worst shooting percentages of the year as well as their second lowest point total, but the Blue Jays picked up their 10th straight win against the Bullets.
The men’s team claimed a win in their fourth game of the stretch against Muhlenberg once again. Schaller posted a season-high 21 points, his 11th double digit scoring effort of the season. The Orange and Blue shot a monumental 66.7 percent from the field in the second half, smothering a run made by the Mules to start it off. This victory secured the Bullets’ fourth place spot in the conference.
The women’s team started out their three win stretch with a victory over Washington College. The balanced scoring attack from the Bullets gave head coach Nate Davis his 200th career win. Back and forth scoring between the teams ended in four players posting double digits to contribute to Gettysburg’s tenth conference win.
Delaney Donohoe ’25 posted her first career double-double in the team’s win over Bryn Mawr. She was 9-10 from the field, leading two other double-digit scorers in Mackenzie Szlosek ’25 and Carly Rice ’22. The Orange and Blue were proficient as a team both offensively and defensively on Thursday. Every player on the team contributed points to their 39 point victory over the Owls. The Bullets were also able to hold their opponents to a mere 24.5 percent from the field.
Rice continued her scoring streak in Saturday’s game, posting 19 of Gettysburg’s 68 points against Muhlenberg. Another team victory preserved the Bullets’ undefeated status in the conference. They were able to hold the Mules below 18 percent from the floor, an attest to their stellar defense. This is the fourth year in a row Gettysburg has swept their regular season series against Muhlenberg.
Both teams will look to continue their success both in Bream Gym at Gettysburg College and on the courts of their opponents in the coming weeks as the regular season ends and the playoffs near.
