Lady Vikings fall to Westtown in Slam opener
In the very first girls’ matchup held at Slam Dunk to the Beach, the Cape Henlopen basketball team fought hard but fell 64-47 to an immensely talented Westtown (Pa.) squad.
“Going up against a team that big, it was great to see us compete so well,” said Cape head coach Pat Woods, whose Vikings were behind 30-14 at the half but went bucket-for-bucket with the Moose after intermission. “We learned a lot today, and I'm proud of them.”
Rutgers-bound senior forward Kaylene Smikle recorded game highs of 23 points and 10 rebounds for the heavily favored Moose, whose roster includes athletes from four states and Canada as well as eight players 5-foot-10 or taller. Senior guard Meliah Van-Otoo added 19 points. Smikle and Van-Otoo knocked down three three-pointers apiece.
Cape hung around in the first quarter, staying within seven, but the Vikings were undone by a three-point second frame in which they didn’t convert a single field goal.
“It was 100 percent mental,” Woods said of the decisive drought. “I asked them, ‘What was the difference between the second quarter and the fourth? Or the second and the first?’ Obviously, with a team like [Westtown], their physicality’s gonna take a toll on you. They said that it felt like there was so much at stake in that second quarter because we were in it, you know?”
Cape shot just 4-for-16 (25 percent) from the floor in the first half, but the Vikings found their range thereafter, going 12-for-22 (55 percent) over the final two periods. Senior forward Morgan Mahoney poured in 14 of her 17 points after halftime, knocking down a pair of threes and showing off an expanded arsenal of inside moves.
The Vikings (3-3, 2-0 Henlopen North) also got 12 points, three assists and three steals from senior guard Mehkia Applewhite, who impressed a sizable crowd with fearless drives to the cup and quick hands on defense. Senior guard Julia Saleur added nine points – all in the second half – and three assists, while senior guard Lauryn Head contributed seven points and four rebounds. Senior guard Ella Rishko closed out the scoring with two points and four boards.
In the first half, Cape looked overwhelmed by the size and athleticism of Westtown, but the Vikings settled themselves after intermission, running patient half-court sets and scoring in transition when opportunities arose. They stood toe-to-toe with the Moose, a squad which has proven to be a tough out for some of the East Coast’s best this season.
Woods saw a good deal of growth from his team.
“I’ll never question their effort – it’s always there," Woods said. "Today, it was about lacking confidence at times, trusting each other, and trusting execution. We’re at our best when we attack [the basket], and we finally did that [in the second half] and were able to hang with them.”
Mahoney was pleased with her team’s strong second-half showing.
“We just wanted to come out and have fun and make the most of being at Slam Dunk,” said Mahoney, who added seven rebounds. “We played at our pace in the second half; we were at our spots, and we did everything we normally do.”
Applewhite saw a shift in mindset from Cape in the second half.
“It was definitely a mental thing that changed for us,” she said. “We went from not executing anything and playing desperate to believing that we could score on [Westtown].”
Cape acquitted itself well on the glass against the much taller Moose, losing the battle of the boards 31-27. The Vikings also limited their turnovers to 16, far fewer than in recent games.
