Talented, aggressive and physically imposing, Monroe High School junior Ashley Hermanson was her opponent's worst nightmare on the basketball court Tuesday night.
The gifted forward led the Cheesmaker girls' basketball team with a game-high 25 points, including 17 in the first half, in the squad's 75-52 Southern Badger Conference road victory over host Fort Atkinson.
"(Ashley) really learned how to use her body effectively and take advantage of opportunities," said Monroe coach Kevin Keen, whose squad improved to 7-0 overall on the season and 6-0 in conference play with Tuesday's win.
The Blackhawks fell to 1-5 overall and 1-4 against Badger South opponents with the loss.
Hermanson played an integral role in helping Monroe score the first 11 points of the night and build a commanding 28-6 lead after one quarter of play en route to an easy victory.
"I thought we were very efficient in that first quarter on both ends of the floor," said Keen. "And I thought we did a nice job maintaining our focus."
Fort Atkinson defenders simply had no answer for the inside presence of Hermanson, who converted 11 field goals and three free throws against the helpless Blackhawks, who could do little more but stand and watch the Cheesmaker post player score basket after basket.
"We'd try to front her, but she did a really good job of keeping our defenders on her back," said interim FA coach Rick Witte of Hermanson. "Then when we did front her, our weak-side defense wasn't there. And even if it was there, (Monroe) did a good job of finding different angles to get the ball to her."
Aiding Hermanson in leading Monroe to victory was junior guard Gwen Sutter, who provided a boost on both ends of the floor. In addition to finishing with 15 points on the night, Sutter made several key plays defensively to help create transition scoring opportunities for her team, which led to numerous easy baskets for her fellow Cheesemakers in the opening quarter.
"We'd talked about being more aggressive defensively, so it was nice to see that out of Gwen and everybody," Keen said.
However, Sutter provided a scoring punch as well in the opening period, totaling nine of her 15 points in that frame.
Numerous Monroe players, both starters and reserves, helped the team maintain its comfortable advantage the rest of the night. Ten players scored for Monroe in the victory, led by Hermanson and Sutter. However, junior forward Jamie Armstrong chipped in 10 as well.
Fort Atkinson's top scoring threat, senior forward Ralissa Nelson, totaled 11 points for her squad in the losing effort. Blackhawk freshman point guard Lexie Weigand added 11.
The gifted forward led the Cheesmaker girls' basketball team with a game-high 25 points, including 17 in the first half, in the squad's 75-52 Southern Badger Conference road victory over host Fort Atkinson.
"(Ashley) really learned how to use her body effectively and take advantage of opportunities," said Monroe coach Kevin Keen, whose squad improved to 7-0 overall on the season and 6-0 in conference play with Tuesday's win.
The Blackhawks fell to 1-5 overall and 1-4 against Badger South opponents with the loss.
Hermanson played an integral role in helping Monroe score the first 11 points of the night and build a commanding 28-6 lead after one quarter of play en route to an easy victory.
"I thought we were very efficient in that first quarter on both ends of the floor," said Keen. "And I thought we did a nice job maintaining our focus."
Fort Atkinson defenders simply had no answer for the inside presence of Hermanson, who converted 11 field goals and three free throws against the helpless Blackhawks, who could do little more but stand and watch the Cheesmaker post player score basket after basket.
"We'd try to front her, but she did a really good job of keeping our defenders on her back," said interim FA coach Rick Witte of Hermanson. "Then when we did front her, our weak-side defense wasn't there. And even if it was there, (Monroe) did a good job of finding different angles to get the ball to her."
Aiding Hermanson in leading Monroe to victory was junior guard Gwen Sutter, who provided a boost on both ends of the floor. In addition to finishing with 15 points on the night, Sutter made several key plays defensively to help create transition scoring opportunities for her team, which led to numerous easy baskets for her fellow Cheesemakers in the opening quarter.
"We'd talked about being more aggressive defensively, so it was nice to see that out of Gwen and everybody," Keen said.
However, Sutter provided a scoring punch as well in the opening period, totaling nine of her 15 points in that frame.
Numerous Monroe players, both starters and reserves, helped the team maintain its comfortable advantage the rest of the night. Ten players scored for Monroe in the victory, led by Hermanson and Sutter. However, junior forward Jamie Armstrong chipped in 10 as well.
Fort Atkinson's top scoring threat, senior forward Ralissa Nelson, totaled 11 points for her squad in the losing effort. Blackhawk freshman point guard Lexie Weigand added 11.
