Bates College’s Elsa Daulerio shoots the ball while under pressure from Brooklyn College’s Ericka James, left, and Mary Dolgin during an NCAA tournament first-round game last season in Lewiston. Andree Kehn / Sun Journal file photo

BRUNSWICK — With her team down 61-51 early in the fourth quarter, Bates women’s basketball coach Alison Montgomery called a timeout.

As her players walked off court and sat down for a moment’s rest last Thursday evening at Bowdoin College, Montgomery looked toward starting center Elsa Daulerio. The junior had missed her last four shots underneath the basket and was struggling to get back playing the way she did in the first quarter, when she scored six point and grabbed four rebounds.

Montgomery wondered, was it fatigue? Daulerio is involved in nearly every possession, either drawing double teams as one of Bates’ primary offensive options or daring opponents to drive in the direction of her 6-foot-3 frame. When she’s in a groove, so are the rest of the Bobcats.

So, she asked Daulerio straight up.

“Can you do this or do we need to go to a different option?”

Daulerio responded on the floor. Nine points, including seven-straight, and three rebounds helped Bates claw back within one point with less than a minute left.

“She basically just told me to finish in the paint, because she believes in me,” Daulerio said. “I was having a stretch where I just couldn’t really finish, and they had great defense, bringing the doubles, too. So (the timeout was) kind of just pulling me together and giving me just a second to calm down and re-gather myself. And yeah, she always believes in me, which is awesome.”

Bowdoin, the seventh-ranked team in the nation, would eventually pull out a 76-71 win behind Abbie Quinn’s 25 points and a 22-point, 11-rebound double-double from Sydney Jones, the reigning NESCAC Player of the Year.

Daulerio played a team-high 37 minutes and finished with 18 points. The Harpswell native also led Bates with nine rebounds, four assists, and two blocks and added a steal.

“I think she’s one of the best post players in the country,” Bowdoin Coach Megan Phelps said. “I’ve known Elsa since she was a little kid, and so I think you just have to know she’s gonna get hers. She’s such a good player, and I think there’s not a lot you can do other than play it straight up and hope that you can bring some doubles or try to just get her out of rhythm a little bit.”

Although it’s technically a road game when Bates travels to Brunswick, Morrell Gymnasium is basically Daulerio’s home court.

For 12 seasons from 2008 to 2020, her mother, Adrienne Shibles, coached the Bowdoin women’s team. With a record of 281-65, Shibles is the winningest coach in program history.

“I definitely spent so much time here when I was younger, just like watching practices, watching games,” Daulerio said. “That’s how I kind of grew my love for basketball, honestly. Really special. Playing in here gets me really fired up.”

Mt. Ararat senior center Elsa Daulerio, left, tries to shoot as Gardiner center Lizzy Gruber defends during a Jan. 14, 2022, game in Topsham. Joe Phelan / Kennebec Journal file photo

Daulerio enjoys playing at Bowdoin because it means she gets her “own little fan section” of family, friends and former Mt. Ararat girls’ basketball teammates and coaches.

The rivalry game is also a reunion for Montgomery, who played for Bowdoin from 2001-2005 and was Shibles’ assistant coach during her first three seasons in Brunswick. Furthermore, Phelps was recruited to Bowdoin by Montgomery and assisted Shibles in her last three seasons. Shibles is now the associate director of athletics at Bates, her alma mater.

Daulerio said she didn’t really consider playing at Bowdoin because of the proximity, and knowing Montgomery since a young age made the decision to play at Bates an easy one. Montgomery said the 16-year relationship has allowed her to be direct and honest in her coaching.

“I think a huge part of coaching is developing trust with your players, so that when there’s tougher moments, when there’s adversity, when you have to push them, you’re connected, and they’re sure about your level of care,” Montgomery said. “So I think we try to do that with all our players. But, I mean, it’s kind of undeniable, right? If you’ve known someone for most of their life, there’s that layer of trust that I think is really helpful.”

Daulerio also knows she doesn’t have to be Bates’ do-it-all player every night, as she’s surrounded by formidable scoring options like sophomore guard Sarah Hughes (14.6 ppg, 50% shooting from 3-point range) and senior guard Alexandra Long (24 points against Bowdoin).

“There’s always a balance there of having healthy pressure and expectation on herself, but just reminding her that we are a pretty complete team,” Montgomery said. “We’ve had a lot of instances already this year when she’s triple-teamed and her teammates are able to make the plays.”

Some pressure may come from wanting to live up to her All-American nods from d3hoops.com (fourth-team selection in 2023-24, third-team this preseason) or from wanting to build upon last year’s 24-6 record and run to the Sweet 16.

But through the first month of the season, Daulerio is averaging 14 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.8 blocks per game. The junior center is doing her best to tune out the noise.

“I try not to think about it too much,” Daulerio said. “I mean, we have such a deep team this year, you can see it in our stats from our first eight games. Everybody is so talented on our team, and that’s gonna carry us a long way. So really happy about that. Everybody steps up every game, so it’s great to see.”