Cathrine Kraayeveld sat down after Saturday’s 68-58 victory over Oregon State and said, “I actually feel pretty good.”
That’s a pretty phenomenal statement from a player who had been out of action since Dec. 26 and returned to the court when the Beavers visited McArthur Court — almost two months later.
Kraayeveld played 23 minutes, scored seven points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, including six on the defensive side of the ball.
So much for her sitting out the rest of the season because of a now-subsided staph infection in her right knee.
“We didn’t know what we’d get out of her,” Oregon head coach Bev Smith said. “But we knew we’d get something.”
Kraayeveld entered the game at 13:47 of the first half, bringing most of the 5,031 fans to their feet.
“I was trying to be serious,” said Kraayeveld, who added that she was trying to keep a smile from forming on her face. “It was exciting to get out there again. The fans really gave me a boost on that.”
The Ducks immediately tried to get the 6-foot-4-inch forward the ball. However, Alissa Edwards’ first pass to the junior sailed wide and out of bounds.
Four minutes later, Kraayeveld brought her rehabilitation full circle with a made free throw, her first point since Dec. 22 against Texas Christian.
Kraayeveld scored five points in 11 minutes of play in the first half but grabbed just two rebounds, neither coming offensively. However, one play defined her play in the first stanza.
With Oregon State’s Brina Chaney — who demoralized the Ducks for eight blocks earlier this season in Corvallis — set to score in the paint at 3:42 of the half, Kraayeveld came swooping down and emphatically kept her from completing the play.
“She gave us moments of brilliance,” Smith said. “Cathrine is an unbelievable basketball player.”
With 11 minutes under her belt, questions arose as to how much time Kraayeveld would get in the second half. After all, the Ducks had a 12-point lead at halftime, so how much time would she play on the floor?
That was quickly answered at the 16:56 mark, after Oregon State pulled to within six.
“It was just a matter of how I felt and staying in there as long as possible,” Kraayeveld said.
The Kirkland, Wash. native played 12 minutes in the second half and, at one point, played seven straight as the game was winding down. Smith kept her in the game for the final minute as well. Kraayeveld, who had decided on Wednesday she would be able to play, pulled in a key rebound with 40 seconds left.
Game, set, match: Oregon.
After the contest, there was no shortage of amazement from her performance, although her teammates were not all that surprised at what she had just done, not to mention the impact it had on the players themselves.
“Having Cathrine back, right there, is a motivation in itself,” sophomore Kedzie Gunderson said. “She’s fun to play with. She does everything for us.”
“It was awesome to have her back,” Edwards said. “It gave us a boost and helps us to have her back.”
The Ducks hope that boost propels them toward the Pacific-10 Conference Tournament. With just four games left against the rest of the conference, time is dwindling for Oregon to pull itself out of a season-long conference slump.
“Every day we’re getting better,” Gunderson said. “Everything is falling into place. I think in the next four games, we’ve got to play tough.”