Lake Forest Academy Struggles Heading Into Break

Despite early season struggles for Lake Forest Academy (LFA), girls' basketball coach Chris Tennyson still believes his young team can turn around their season.

"We are young and learning a lot quickly," he said. "I think the girls have done a great job, but this first half of the season has been full of tough opponents. After the break, we'll look to get back into the swing of things, and I think we'll be able to continue to improve."

A year after posting a 13-7 record with two Division I players, the Caxys have gotten off to a disappointing 1-6 start this season.

After dropping all four contests in the Cougar Classic, the Caxys traveled to Woodlands Academy Nov. 29 where they garnered their lone victory of the season.

Lake Forest Academy jumped out to a quick 8-0 lead before Woodlands trimmed it to 21-18.  However, the Caxys wenjt on a 10-0 run to close out the first half with a 31-18 edge.  LFA would not relinquish the lead in coasting to a 55-31 victory. Junior Lauren Clamage posted a game-high 20 points.

The following weekend, the Caxys traveled to St. Louis to play Mary Institute and John Burroughs Dec. 3-4, respectively. 

Tennyson described both opponents as "both were very good teams" that would test the team.  Scoring seemed to be a problem for Lake Forest Academy against Mary Institute-Country Day School in a 55-12 setback.

Against John Burroughs, the Caxys ran into the same problem in succumbing, 62-33. Clamage paced LFA scorers in both games with seven against MICDS and 12 against John Burroughs. Erin Peterson recorded her first double-double of the season against John Burroughs as she scored 11 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. Peterson also recorded a double-digit rebounding performance against MICDS the night before.

If the Caxys hope to improve their record during the second half of the season, the offense must improve on their 33 point average compared to their opponents average of more than 50 points a game.

Tennyson believes there are three areas  to focus on — maintain intensity, talk more on the floor, and grab more loose balls/rebounds.

Because of its status as a boarding school, Lake Forest Academy does not participate in a holiday tournament.

"Our students leave after final exams and return in the new year," coach Tennyson said. "It's a long break, but our boarding students deserve the time at home. Therefore, we choose to not play in a tournament this time of year."

The Caxys will return to action at 1 p.m. Jan. 8 against Chicago Hope Academy.