Senators look to keep season alive against Reno

It's been nearly two months since Carson and Reno's girls teams have seen each other.

The Huskies won that first meeting 46-33 on Nov. 30, outscoring Carson 20-5 in the fourth quarter to wipe out a two-point Carson lead.

The Senators, 15-11 overall and the third-place team in the Sierra League, will get a chance to avenge that opening night loss when they visit the Huskies, 21-3, at 7 p.m. today in the opening round of the NIAA 4A regional playoffs.

Neither team was at full strength in that opening game, but that won't be the case tonight.

Reno was minus Gigi Hascheff, who is averaging 9.3 per game. Carson's starting point guard Elayna Shine was absent. Shine is averaging 4.3 points and 2.7 assists per contest, and critical to the Carson offense for her ability to handle the ball and penetrate.

This is the third straight tough game for the Senators, who finished the regular season with road losses at Bishop Manogue and Galena, the top two teams in the Sierra League.

"We've got film on them," said Carson coach Todd Ackerman, who hasn't seen the Huskies play in person since the late-November meeting. "Their freshman (Shay Shaw) is starting to shoot the ball well, and their big freshman center (6-foot-1 Morgan McGwire) has gotten a lot better."

Shannon Gough was especially effective in the earlier meeting, scoring 22 points on a 7-for-17 effort from the field. She is a player that Carson needs to play hard away from the ball, especially on the perimeter.

"We've been playing pretty consistently since the beginning of the year," Reno coach Shane Foster said. "I like where we're at. The girls are starting to figure it out and playing hard.

"Shay has done real well for a freshman. We have four girls that can shoot the ball. Morgan has been playing real well. She's averaging about 11 rebounds and four blocks a game. For a freshman, that's solid inside (play)."

Ackerman said he isn't worried about his team's defense. The Senators played tough against Galena, holding Emily Burns to 11 points, 10 in the first quarter and one in the fourth quarter. Obviously Ackerman is hoping for the same kind of effort against the Huskies.

Ackerman would like to see a better effort on the boards against Reno. Galena had multiple second-chance efforts in the second half against the Senators. Carson needs to limit Reno to one shot per possession.

Carson's top two scorers, Whitney Nash and Eliza Matley, were a combined 5-for-24 from the floor in the first meeting. Both have shot it better since then, and both need to be at the top of their games tonight for Carson to pull off the upset.

If Carson wins it would advance to the regional semifinals Friday night at Carson.