NORTH MANCHESTER - Manchester girls basketball coach Mark Underwood was unexpectedly jubilant following Tuesday's 47-26 home loss to the Winamac Lady Warriors.
"I realize it's going to sound funny for a coach that had his team score 26 points and get beat by 21, but we made huge strides," Underwood said. "We improved so much from the last game, and we played against a really quality team."In their last contest, the Manchester Lady Squires (2-2) fell 70-67 in overtime to Mississinewa, but their loss Winamac (4-1) was a little more gratifying to Underwood.
"I was pleased with our poise," Underwood said. "(Winamac) really came out with the press, but we didn't have a turnover, turnover, turnover."
The Squires may not have turned the ball over as much as they have in the past, but they did have 22, including four-straight in the second quarter, which resulted in a 12-10 deficit turning into a 19-10 hole.
After falling down by nine, Manchester was able to come within 19-12, but that was as close as they'd get.
Making it tough for the Squires to cut into the lead was the inside-outside game of senior Jordan Brandt and junior Allie DeFries.
Inside, DeFries netted 14 points and grabbed six rebounds, while Brandt hit three 3s on her way to a game-high 15 points, four assists and two steals.
"DeFries and Brandt always lead us," Winamac coach Jim Swaney said. "Tonight, Brandt did a good job of handling the ball and hitting shots as well."
DeFries was Manchester's biggest problem early, scoring 10 points in the opening half, causing Underwood to get the point across to his girls to slow her down in the second half.
"We were not doing a good job of keeping track of her," Underwood said.
But it wasn't just those two who were scoring, as seniors Whitney Schmicker and Hayley Stelly each netted seven points.
"They have some seasoned players, which we don't have," Underwood said. "We still have kids learning and finding out what it takes to be a varsity player."
Manchester was led by one of its two seniors, as Jessica Bedke scored 12 points and grabbed four rebounds, while freshman Kayla Flack and sophomore Hanna Schmidt each scored five points and sophomore Hannah Little grabbed four rebounds.
Despite being down the entire game, Underwood was happy to see his girls didn't start pointing fingers and getting down on themselves.
"We played with negative emotions in our last game," Underwood said. "When we started getting in trouble, we lost our composure a little bit."
And not losing that composure seemed to outweigh losing the game.
"I feel about as good after this 20-point beating as I've ever felt as a coach," Underwood said.
