Game: Ursuline at Salem International
Location: Salem, West Virginia
Last night’s road game took the Arrows to Salem, West Virginia, a sleepy little town about 45 miles east of nowhere. I am no stranger to West Virginia, my grandparents lived here for a time, and I also have an aunt and uncle that still live here. With that said it's always interesting going to parts of the country that are a little out of your element. On the way down I noticed two things that are distinctly West Virginia: 1. A rooster taking a stroll down the street, and 2. A home that had more furniture outside of it than inside. Well I really didn't go inside the house, but I'm just assuming they didn't have seven couches inside.
Anyway, last night the Arrows battled Salem International and, like me wondering outside of my element, I'm not sure Ursuline knew what they were in for. The Tigers were coming off a win over Penn State Beaver, the programs first win in its last 38 tries. To put it in perspective, the Tigers have lost almost every game for two full seasons, and lost them by around 30 points per game.
However, basketball is a funny sport. It's a sport where, for whatever reason, a lot of times teams play down to the competition. I love basketball, and I hate basketball, because on any given night anything can happen. It's the same reason we all love March Madness.
But last night it didn't work in the Arrows favor as they met a feisty Salem International team that, despite falling behind by 14 points, fought, scraped and managed to get themselves back into the game.
It was the Arrows, in fact, that had to play underdog and come from behind to win the game late. I was impressed with the Tigers, and it will be interesting to see how they progress the rest of the way.
Ursuline will play them again in the final game of the season, which should be a fun rematch. Hopefully the Arrows learned from this game and can continue to improve, but only time will tell.
With that said there are some really good things that game out of the 47-45 victory:
- The Arrows now have their longest winning streak of the season at three, and the longest winning streak since the program won four straight in the 2008-2009 season.
- Ursuline already has six wins on the season, with 12 games remaining. That's important because the team won seven games all of last year.
- The Arrows have this winning streak despite injuries and other developments that have left the team with just seven active players on the roster.
Ursuline will return home to battle Malone and start play in the OIC. Game time is Saturday at 2 p.m. and I look forward to seeing everyone there!
