Titans win smiles

Third annual Jam the Gym a success

Mike Partee

Media Credit: Javier Magallanes [Click to enlarge]

The LCC women's basketball team has a lot in common with the Energizer bunny: they just keep going and going. With an extended national record for consecutive home wins now at 75, the Titans seem to live up to their mythological namesakes.

That 75th consecutive home game win came on the eve of Jan. 27 when the Titans dominated the Mt. Hood saints 71-59. The game proved a lot tougher than LCC anticipated due to the strong defensive stance of the Saints.

In the end, the strong offensive power of the Titans hammered points onto the scoreboard.

Sophomore guard Sarah Brolsma Whitfield carried her weight and then some by scoring 17 points, while sophomore forward Theresa Brown kept the ball in LCC's possession with 13 rebounds.

The game against Clackamas Jan. 24 was no different. The Titans had some bumbles and there were some picked off passes, but the women rallied together and pulled off another amazing 85-73 win.

Sophomore guard Sarah Brolsma Whitfield started the game with a three-pointer that set the pace for the Titans. Clackamas managed to keep the score within 15 the entire game but could only gain two short-lived leads.

The Titans weren't the only winners that night. Part of the third annual "Jam the Gym" night was a drive for Food for Lane County. Four 50-gallon donation barrels were placed outside the doors to the gym to collect donations from supporters of Titan basketball.

The barrels were nearly full when coaches pulled them into the athletic office to await pick up by the Food for Lane County representative. "Man, these things are heavy," assistant coach Kevin Grumbley said.

Jam the Gym saw record attendance that night, a fact that didn't escape notice by the statistics table. "I've been doing this for 11 years," Steven Grumbley, father of the assistant coach, said. "And this is the most people that I have seen at a home game."

During halftime, children formed an orderly line on the court for their chance to sink a basket and win ice cream. Some of the boys and girls who flocked to the court for their shot needed a little boost from the many coaches who organized the event.

Bi-Mart donated 500 shirts with the Jam the Gym logo on them and nearly all the shirts found owners. Scores of supporters donned their shirts for the game, lending the gymnasium a sense of unity.

The topping on the cake came in the second half when the refreshed and recharged Titans thundered back onto the court to send the Clackamas Cougars running for the hills.