After winning a closely contested game against Coe College on Tuesday, the Augustana women’s basketball team made history, earning a program best 5-0 start to their season.
In a huge team effort with a strong performance throughout the game and key plays in the fourth period by junior guard Victoria Allen, senior guard Makayla Fallon, senior center Kaycee Kallenberger and sophmore guards Corrie Reiley and Izzy Anderson, the Vikings defeated the Cohawks 103-94.
The Vikings led for most of the game, leading 21-17 after the first period, 46-41 in the second and 62-59 in the third. In the fourth quarter, the Kohawks were able to tie up the game and put the game into overtime.
Also with the win, the team dropped the Coe Kohawks to 1-2 on the season, defeating Iowa Wesleyan College, but falling to fellow CCIW team Carthage College.
The road for this strong season was paved during the Vikings’ first home game, as they left the Carver Center with their first win under their belt by beating out Rockford University 102-61. The next three were against Monmouth College 83-51, Dubuque University 100-80 and Webster University 82-69.
The Vikings almost lost their streak during the Webster University game as they fell behind five points with six minutes left in the fourth quarter.  A strong performance led by Reiley in the final six minutes of the game put the team on a 14-0 run and brought Augustana out on top.
Beyond individual performances, Fallon said their strong season comes from the team’s competitiveness and work ethic.
“Once we realized how good we actually are, we started to connect a lot better on court and we became more dedicated to our pregame warm ups,” Fallon said. “A lot of us like to come in, shoot around and stretch before games. All of these little things have helped us to become more successful.”
Sophomore guard Sadie Roberts also noticed a change in how the team is performing during games and during practice.
“Our intensity on court is a lot higher,” Roberts said.  “The competitiveness has visibly increased especially in full court drills and off court workouts. It takes a lot of commitment and dedication to train. Our team really stepped up with that this year.”
Roberts also gave credit to the team’s newfound confidence.
With the team so close knit, Fallon said the team’s bonds have played into their winning streak as everyone gets along with each other. Fallon also described how that closeness has helped them win their games.
The next opponent for the Vikings will be a conference game against North Park University at 5 p.m. on Saturday in the Roy J. Carver Center.