Women’s basketball defeats Kennesaw St.

In a game filled with mostly inefficient play, sophomore forward Bridgette Rettstatt emerged as the light for the Liberty Lady Flames as they took down the Kennesaw State Owls 68-55 Tuesday, Feb. 25. Rettstatt, the reigning ASUN player of the week, tied her career-high, which she set earlier this month against North Alabama, with 25 points. She scored 14 of these points in a pivotal fourth quarter.

“I feel like when I’m playing, I’m just wide open,” Retstatt said. “My teammates are finding me in the perfect spots, and I don’t even really have to work for a lot of these buckets. Right now, my shot is just falling.”

For most of the first three quarters, Retstatt was the only consistent offensive weapon as the Lady Flames and the Owls struggled heavily from the field early on. The Owls jumped out to a 9-2 lead to start the game but were then held scoreless for the next 10 minutes after a media timeout with 6:54 left in the first quarter.

“I had to use a timeout, and I never use timeouts in the first quarter,” Head Coach Carey Green said. “We weren’t looking good. They were beating us up and down the court, getting easy layups, and we needed to settle in and get back to the little things.”

During this defensive battle, the teams had to deal with fouls slowing down the pace of the game tremendously. Four of Liberty’s post players finished with four or more fouls. However, Green was willing to accept this in return for good defense. 

“They were being aggressive,” Green said. “That’s what I want. It’s unfortunate that KK Barbour fouled out, but we have more players on the bench that we can go to.”

The middle of the third quarter is when Liberty found its offensive rhythm. This carried into the fourth quarter when sophomore guard Ashtyn Baker and Rettstatt combined for 19 of the team’s 25 points. 

“We were sharing the ball better,” Baker said. “It was something we were lacking in the first quarter. I think we only had seven assists in the first half, and we ended with 17. We’re a much better team when we share the ball.” 

Along with her 25 points, Rettstatt pulled down eight rebounds and shot 68 percent from the floor. Baker finished with 11 points and four assists. The standout player for Kennesaw State was sophomore guard Kamiyah Street who had 19 points and 13 assists. Street secured a double-double before the first half was over.

Baker and Rettstatt’s offensive performances ensured the Lady Flames victory. This win puts the team at 8-6 in ASUN play with only two games remaining before the conference tournament. 

Liberty has a rematch against North Alabama Tuesday, March 5. The Lady Flames previously defeated North Alabama 61-57 when they played Feb. 16. How Liberty finishes out the season will decide which seed they will take into the ASUN tournament.

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