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This past weekend the Thunder Women’s Basketball team took to the court against the Eagles from Kings University. Going into the match the Thunder were looking to continue their winning ways from the previous weekend and to build on the fact that they had a good week of practice.  Right from the tip off the Thunder were the ones to take flight as they jumped out to a 29-6 first quarter lead. “We moved the ball extremely well. We played with high energy and we shot the ball from the perimeter,” stated Coach Valpreda. In the second half, the Thunder continued to be a well-oiled machine on both ends of the floor. They were able to get contributions from everyone on the team although two individuals did stand out, as Shyanne Walton and Sofia Lucadello both tallied 19 points.  “We were excellent from all aspects of the floor tonight shooting 53% from the FG, 43% 3-pointers and 61% from the FT line.” The Thunder went on to win 80-33.  The Player of the Game was Sofia Lucadello with 19pts, 5rebs and 3/3 from the 3pt line.
On Saturday night, the Thunder were back in “Thunder Country” for the first time in 2016. “Our goal for the second semester is to be able to play the full forty minutes against every opponent.  No matter who it is (we are playing), we need to be consistent on the floor.”  The Eagles were the ones to jump out to an early lead as they looked to set the tone. But as the Thunder finally got comfortable they started to chip into the King’s lead and took the first quarter 23-10. “We finally settled in; the starters did a good job of getting control of the game and the players off the bench picked it up helping to open the lead.” For the Thunder the combo of Kendall Armstrong and Lindsay Piper did a great job of facilitating on the offensive end and being tenacious on defense. Going into halftime the Thunder were up 47-10. The Thunder started the second half a little slow as they only scored ten points in the third quarter. “Again I stress the fact that we need to be a 40 minute team, not 38, or 35 but a full 40 no matter who we play,” declared Valpreda. The Thunder did pick it up in the fourth quarter and finished the contest with a 71-41 victory. “We played extremely well both nights. I’m proud of the way we have performed the last 3 games.” Congratulations to Lindsay Piper who was POG for the night.
The Thunder now look to compete against the high powered Lakeland Rustlers in a home and home series this coming weekend.  The home game goes Friday night at 6 PM at the Ralph King Athletic Centre.