At this point, Liberty's girls basketball team expected to have a winning record, but a 59-49 loss to Nazareth on Jan. 6 dashed that prospect for now.

"This week, 5-5 is not where we should be," said Hurricane guard, Taysia Snead.

Liberty came out to play in the first quarter at home against Nazareth, and eight minutes later, a basket at the buzzer by Hurricane guard, Kaylin West, brought Liberty to within two points of the Eagles. In the second , however, eight straight points by the Eagles in the first three minutes were more than enough to shift the momentum.

Nazareth maintained a 12 point lead for another quarter, but halfway through the fourth, Nazareth threw the ball away, setting the stage for comeback opportunities.

West scored two points, pulling Liberty to within seven. Another Eagle turnover resulted in two more points for West, and a huge rebound by Torie Zerbe set up another two for West, making it 47-44.

During a Liberty timeout, Snead, the Hurricanes' vocal leader, stressed communication.

"That's just our biggest problem. If I'm not talking, nobody's talking," she said.

With less than three minutes remaining, Snead hit a three-point shot, grabbed a rebound, and drove to the basket for two more points.

"Other teams don't look to me as a shooter, and so my team looked to me. [Regarding the rebound] I just knew I needed the ball," said Snead.

The Hurricanes closed the gap by a score of 51-49, but foul shots put the game away for Nazareth.

"We focus a lot on working together, and that's when we do well. We've all been playing together since second grade. Nobody else has that," Snead said.

Snead could only guess as to what would be discussed in the locker room after the game.

"We talk about being a team and working to our potential, and to be what everyone expects us to be," she said.

Also last Tuesday, Bethlehem Catholic defeated Whitehall, 61-22.