It was a freak accident, but it could alter the outlook for the defending Capital Athletic Conference women’s basketball champions.
Going through warm-ups in practice prior to the Thomas More Holiday tournament in Kentucky last week, Marymount senior guard Tara Eddy (Vienna/Madison High) stumbled hard and suffered a knee injury that could keep her out for a significant portion of the rest of the season.
Not only was Eddy leading the Saints (6-5, 3-1 CAC) in scoring (11.8 points per game) but she also shot a conference-best 45.5 percent from 3-point range and had a league-leading assist-to-turnover ratio (2.54).
The injury is Eddy’s second in three seasons since transferring from Division I Jacksonville, where she played her freshman year. She’s injured both of her knees during her career and also missed part of her senior year at Madison High with a knee injury.
“Everybody else has to fill in around her,” said Saints coach Bill Finney, who has shifted the offense inside, where 6-foot-1 junior Stephanie Witko (9.4 ppg, 7.4 rpg), 6-foot senior Kacee Grogan (7.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg) and freshman Kathleen Brown (Bethesda/Whitman High) (6.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg) provide the bulk of the scoring.
After Marymount lost its first two games without Eddy, Witko scored 19 points and grabbed six rebounds in a 69-58 win over Franklin & Marshall. The Saints host Hood tonight at 5.
“We’re kind of having the same ups and downs this season that we has last season,” said Witko. “Last season it ended up all coming together the last month and pushing us through.”
