AMHERST — Somebody needed to tell Erin Klaes that it was her first game as a varsity basketball player Friday night at the Curry Hicks Cage.
The freshman played with the confidence of an veteran in scoring 27 points with four rebounds in a 52-17 win over Palmer.
“I felt good going into the game,” Klaes said. “I’ve done AAU. It felt natural after the nerves went away. I tried to do just do my thing without worrying too much about anything,”
The experience of playing AAU was apparent in her first varsity game. Klaes’ offense was impressive, nearly matched by her defense that saw her record seven steals.
The steals led to easy baskets for her teammates and herself in transition. Klaes had four 3-pointers in the game and forced the action at times; making nine free-throws.
“We knew she could shoot,” Amherst coach Dustin James said. “I thought after we got comfortable after the first quarter they got more relaxed. I was happy with the effort. We are a learning we are a young team.”
Erin’s sister, Jenna, played for Amherst and graduated in 2010.
“I wanna be like my older sister as a player,” Klaes said. “Be a good team player.”
The Hurricanes went into the second quarter down 10-6. In the second quarter, Klaes had 12 points to give Amherst the lead going into halftime.
“She is still learning,” James said. “We all are as a group as far as what we want as a group for great shots.”
Amherst outscored Palmer 42-11 the rest of the way.
Teya Nolan, one of two juniors on the Amherst roster, had seven points with eight rebounds. Karta Khalsa added 10 points.
Ingrid Salvador and Lacey Dalkas both had four points for the Hurricanes.
Amherst 52, Palmer 17
Palmer (0-1)
Cole 2-0-5, S. LeVasseur 0-1-1, Mega 1-1-3, Wilson 3-1-7, K. LeVasseur 0-1-1. Totals 6-4-17
Amherst (1-0)
Klaes 7-9-27, Khalsa 4-2-10, Nolan 2-3-7, Salvador 2-0-4, Dalkas 2-0-4, Bumgarder 0-0-0, Layer 0-0-0. Totals 17-14-52.
|
Palmer |
10 |
3 |
1 |
3 |
—17 |
|
Amherst |
6 |
16 |
16 |
14 |
—52 |
3-Pointers—Palmer 1 (Cole) Amherst 4 (Klaes 4)
