The wheels were up to Florida for the Mercy women’s basketball team this week, as the Mavericks migrated south for two back-to-back non conference contests against the Saint Leo Lions and the Columbus State Cougars in Florida. 

An opportunity to play against non-regional competition is an excellent gauge on a team’s midseason outlook, especially for a crew with the lofty aspirations as this one.

After being defeated in last year’s ECC semi final, the Mavs bolted out to their best start since 1975, rattling off five straight victories to open their campaign. But they’ve since hit a stalemate as December action has approached, holding an underwhelming 1-4 record since the start of the month.

Mercy’s struggles traveled with them to The Sunshine State, beginning with a close 48-41 defeat to Saint Leo on Friday. Despite shooting deficiencies from the get-go, the team still found themselves with a 24-19 lead after a half of play thanks to an equally stagnant Lions’ offense. 

The teams were a combined 26 percent from the field and 3-for-16 on shots from beyond the arc, insinuating a defensive scuffle was on the horizon.

Saint Leo regrouped in their own building quicker than the Mavericks did, sparking a 16 point third quarter in which Mercy only scored seven. The Lions’ poised 54 percent shooting in the quarter toted them to a second half victory on a night a strong offensive Mercy squad didn’t have their fastball.

It was still a commendable performance on the defensive end for the Mavs, who held Saint Leo to their second lowest output of the season (48). Considering the Lions are averaging 68 points per game on offense, it’s an accomplishment that Scott Lagas’ unit should account for as they continue to pave their championship path. 

Angelina Barrera was sound on both sides of the court, nearing a double-double with nine points and a team-high nine rebounds. The sophomore has continued to look more comfortable as she’s taken on a heftier load in her second season, and has emerged firmly as another viable option behind Katie Wall and Jaclyn Stanavich.

Stanavich was the only Maverick to record double digit tallies in the match, posting 11 points with five additional rebounds. A quiet night was from standout guard Katie Wall (8 points), it was one of the infrequent occasions that the team captain had some trouble finding her groove.

Regardless of the outcome, there was no time to dwell with another game on tap in less than 24 hours.

Mercy had a short recovery before hopping right back into game action against Columbus State on Saturday afternoon. The Cougars were also on short rest after defeating fellow ECC member D’Youville in a tight 67-63 match on Friday, evening the playing field for a fatigued Mavericks group.

Columbus State didn’t appear as drained as Mercy did, though.

The Cougars came out firing from the opening tip, shooting 70 percent from the floor in the first quarter. Early turnovers by Mercy made that a rough concoction, and it concluded in the Mavs trailing at the half by double digits, 37-25.

Stanavich was the focal point for the Mavericks, exploding for 25 points, 10 rebounds, three steals, and three assists. The junior led the team in all of those categories.

Other than the forward, the support was hard to come by after that. It was a substandard afternoon for the Mercy back court offensively, who shot 1-for-11 from three point territory and just 30 percent from inside the arc. 

It was an uphill climb for the Mavs once for the remainder of the game, who came as close as cutting the deficit to seven points with 1:29 remaining before Columbus State put the finishing touches on the win with the last six points of regulation. The Cougars defeated Mercy, 67-54, to send the Mavericks home winless on the weekend with much to think about.

How they regather themselves during the short Christmas break, we will discover in the coming weeks, but the response will be revealing of the character of Scott Lagas’ team. The potential of this year’s roster is prodigious, headlined by arguably the best player to ever come through the Dean Smith Athlete Center in Katie Wall.

Lagas comes home with some refurbishing to do before his team’s next exhibition battle against Division I Sacred Heart on New Year’s Eve. Ball handling will be a key area of focus for Mercy as they’ve dealt with their fair share of turnovers this season. Some games it’s caught them, other times they got by, but averaging 20 a game will hold them back of their end season goals if they don’t stop the leak now.

There’s no time to hit the panic button just yet. With a 7-5 overall record, the Mavericks still sit finer than they did at this point last season, which they were .500 at 6-6 to close out 2022.

After some needed time off, Mercy will get their next chance to get back in the win column and continue their expedition to an East Coast Conference title.