STOUGHTON - With three starters in foul trouble and trailing Stoughton by five, the Monroe boys basketball team found itself in a tough position going into the fourth quarter Friday night. But the Cheesemakers came up huge in the final period, especially from the free throw line, to knock off the Vikings 47-42.
Monroe trailed Stoughton 33-28 before outscoring the Vikings 19-9 in the final quarter. Monroe coach Pat Murphy credited the Cheesemakers' free throw shooting as being instrumental in the comeback.
"We made 10 of 11 free throws in the fourth," Murphy said. "We got stops when we needed to. We responded when they would make a play. We just refused to lose in the end. We were playing to win, not playing not to lose."
Starters Brian Schneider, Trent Wyssbrod, and Joe Latimer each had three fouls going into the fourth. Latimer said the key for the Cheesemakers in the fourth quarter was the solid efforts they got from players off the bench.
"We got a lot of contributions off the bench," Latimer said. "It didn't look too good going into the fourth. Me, Trent, and Brian all had three fouls. You gotta give credit to the guys on the bench for stepping up."
Added Murphy, "All eleven of our guys contributed."
One obstacle the Cheesemakers had to overcome was the Vikings' size. Three of Stoughton's players are listed at 6'7" or taller.
"It was definitely a huge challenge," Latimer said. "We're not gonna face many teams with a 6'7" kid and a 6'9" kid. We kept saying it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."
Senior Alex Barenklau led Monroe with 18 points. Latimer also contributed 13 for the Cheesemakers. Barenklau said the key for himself was taking the ball to the basket.
"I hit my open shots when I had them. I took it to the hole more. Overall, I was just more aggressive," he said.
Stoughton won the Badger South a year ago, and the Vikings' home gym has been a house of horrors for the Cheesemakers in recent years, which made this victory just that much sweeter.
"This is the first time I've won in Stoughton," said Barenklau, a four-year varsity player. "They always have a good team."
"That's a tough place to play," Murphy added. "Last year, we lost by 19 there, I think it was 59-40. We've gone 1-5 against them the last three years."
Monroe now has a 7-1 overall record, including a 2-1 mark in the Badger South.
Said Latimer, "It's better to go into break 7-1 than 6-2."
Monroe trailed Stoughton 33-28 before outscoring the Vikings 19-9 in the final quarter. Monroe coach Pat Murphy credited the Cheesemakers' free throw shooting as being instrumental in the comeback.
"We made 10 of 11 free throws in the fourth," Murphy said. "We got stops when we needed to. We responded when they would make a play. We just refused to lose in the end. We were playing to win, not playing not to lose."
Starters Brian Schneider, Trent Wyssbrod, and Joe Latimer each had three fouls going into the fourth. Latimer said the key for the Cheesemakers in the fourth quarter was the solid efforts they got from players off the bench.
"We got a lot of contributions off the bench," Latimer said. "It didn't look too good going into the fourth. Me, Trent, and Brian all had three fouls. You gotta give credit to the guys on the bench for stepping up."
Added Murphy, "All eleven of our guys contributed."
One obstacle the Cheesemakers had to overcome was the Vikings' size. Three of Stoughton's players are listed at 6'7" or taller.
"It was definitely a huge challenge," Latimer said. "We're not gonna face many teams with a 6'7" kid and a 6'9" kid. We kept saying it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."
Senior Alex Barenklau led Monroe with 18 points. Latimer also contributed 13 for the Cheesemakers. Barenklau said the key for himself was taking the ball to the basket.
"I hit my open shots when I had them. I took it to the hole more. Overall, I was just more aggressive," he said.
Stoughton won the Badger South a year ago, and the Vikings' home gym has been a house of horrors for the Cheesemakers in recent years, which made this victory just that much sweeter.
"This is the first time I've won in Stoughton," said Barenklau, a four-year varsity player. "They always have a good team."
"That's a tough place to play," Murphy added. "Last year, we lost by 19 there, I think it was 59-40. We've gone 1-5 against them the last three years."
Monroe now has a 7-1 overall record, including a 2-1 mark in the Badger South.
Said Latimer, "It's better to go into break 7-1 than 6-2."
