Basketball | 02/17/2022

One of them hadn't played basketball in almost two years. The other played only sparingly a year ago.
 
Both were starting fresh at a new school with a whole new group of teammates.
 
So it's not surprising that neither Gabby Martin nor Lydia Hay had much of an idea of what to expect heading into this season – their first at the College of Saint Benedict.
 
Martin, in fact, wasn't even sure she was going to play at all.
 
"I knew I was going to come to school here," said Martin, a 5-foot-3 point guard out of Pillager (Minnesota) High School who played three seasons at Valley City (North Dakota State), but missed almost all of her first-year and junior seasons due to shoulder injuries and did not play at all in the COVID-abbreviated 2020-21 campaign.
 
"I wasn't 100 percent sure on basketball. But once I got here (last September), I figured I'd give it a try and see how it worked out."
 
The evidence indicates it's worked out pretty well. And the same could be said for Hay, a 6-foot post out of Wayzata (Minnesota) High School who played at Minnesota State-Moorhead as a first-year last season, seeing action in seven of her team's 13 games and averaging 4.4 minutes of action per contest.
 
Both have earned spots in the starting lineup for the Bennies (11-10 MIAC, 14-10 overall), who earned the No. 5 seed in the MIAC Tournament and will play host to No. 12 seed St. Scholastica (3-19, 3-21) in the first round at 1 p.m. Saturday at Claire Lynch Hall.
 
Martin ranks second on the team in scoring with an average of 9.6 points per game and is second on the team in assists with 46. Hay, meanwhile, is averaging 6.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game with a team-best 22 blocks. That ranks her among the MIAC leaders in that statistical category.
 
"I just wanted to be in a place I was more passionate about," Hay said. "I had a good experience in Moorhead. But I wanted to be somewhere that I would be really proud to be a part of the team and represent the school.
 
"And St. Ben's felt like a perfect fit."
 
CSB head coach Mike Durbin is certainly glad to have both players aboard.
 
"They've each had a huge impact on our season," Durbin said. "With her size, Lydia has given us additional length that we've been able to utilize on both the offensive and defensive end. She scored our first six points in (a 57-55 win over) St. Catherine on Monday (Feb. 14) and really got us started on the right foot.
 
"And Gabby hadn't really played in a long time. But she's gotten back into the flow as the season has gone along. I think she's playing by far her best basketball of the season right now.
 
"Neither of them came in here looking at themselves as the savior of our program. They came in looking to contribute and fit in and they've definitely done that."
 
Martin, a communications major who is eyeing a future career in public relations, has an additional year of eligibility remaining which she said she intends to use. And because of an NCAA ruling allowing athletes an additional year of eligibility because of COVID's impact on last season, Hay still has three more years to go after this one.
 
Which makes both players excited about what's to come.
 
"When you look at the talent we have on this team, and the fact that we have a lot of the same women coming back next season, I think the future is really bright for this program," Martin said.
 
"And I'm really happy to be able to be a part of it."
 
But in the short term, their focus is squarely fastened on the MIAC Tournament.
 
"I think we have the chance to make a run, but we have to take it one game at a time," Hay said. "If this season has shown anything, it's that you can't overlook anybody in the MIAC. Every team is capable of winning on any given night."