Alibegovic debuts with a win

The ladies team of STOL-Grasshoppers won their first match under the leadship of new coach Burhan Alibegovic. They defeated Eurosped Twente by 59-62. With this result, STOL-Grasshoppers have taken over the 3rd place in the First Division.

Last Thursday, the club from Katwijk announced that Alibegovic would coach the team until the end of the season after the sudden departure of Bo Melis. Alibegovic, originally from Bosnia, won the championship in the Promotion Division in 2005 with the men’s team from MSV Noordwijk. Last summer he was active as head coach of the National men’s under 20 team, and assistant coach of the National team.

Alibegovic: “When I was asked to help the Katwijk’s team, I had to seriously think about it. I finally decided to accept. This team has quality and, therefore, they have come a long way. But I see more room for improvement. I will try to provide more stability, and other options when our shots are not falling. In addition, our defensive tasks can be improved.

The match in Tubbergen was not attractive, and the result was a close game. After a first quarter that ended in a tie (14-14), STOL-Grasshoppers managed to take a small lead by halftime (30-33) although the team was not playing well. The 3-point shots were especially disappointing – 1 success in 24 attempts. In the second half, the team from Katwijk managed to widen their lead a bit: 43-49. In the last period Twente did their best to come back, but STOL-Grasshoppers held their ground.

Alibegovic: “Twente might be in last place, but they certainly aren’t a bad team . Because we kept them to less than 60 points, we were able to take the win even though our shots were not falling.”

Top scorers: Valentine 17, Philippo 15, Manuputty 11, Karin Kuijt 10 (11 assists)