After another week of high-quality play, the Houghton College women’s basketball team found itself in a position to make a run at a berth in the Empire 8 conference tournament.
With an overall record of (10-7) and (6-2) in conference, the Highlanders were sitting at the third spot, trailing only Sage and St. John Fisher in the Empire 8 standings. If there was any doubt that the Highlanders deserved that third spot, it was quickly erased by their 60-52 statement win on the road at Sage College. Houghton came into the game full of confidence and essentially controlled the game from start to finish surrendering a two-point lead only once in the second quarter. It was a team effort from the Highlanders. The team had three players make their way into double digits scoring the ball, and the team passed the ball well totaling 16 total assists. “I’m honestly super excited to be where we are right now…the overall focus in our locker room is to take it one game at a time, one quarter at a time, one minute at a time, and one position at a time. and to just build on what we have already accomplished this year.” Said sophomore guard Cori Beck. The win goes a long way, letting the rest of the conference know that the highlanders are here to compete. The Highlanders will have a chance to defeat the only other team ahead of them in the conference on Tuesday night at the Neilsen Center at 8:00.
The men’s basketball team’s struggles have continued as the team fights to get back into the win column. The teams biggest bright spot continues to be their offensive production. In their contest with Utica College in which junior guard Dylan Lambert was sidelined, it was Carl Holmes that stepped into the spotlight. Holmes tallied 23 points and 4 assists while converting on three out of five attempts from beyond the arc. Unfortunately, the Highlanders were defeated by a score of 76-57. The team will look for their first conference win on Tuesday night against St. John Fisher College.