ELKHORN - The Monroe girls basketball team dropped a close game in Elkhorn, 53-48.
Monroe (0-3) led 35-34 after three quarters, but the Elks won a back-and-forth fourth quarter to secure the victory. Monroe coach Sam Mathiason liked the way his team competed and believes that the game was a good learning experience for the Cheesemakers.
"I thought that overall we did a nice job. The effort was very, very good," Mathiason said. "It was a tough one to lose, but we have a lot to learn from this. I think the girls saw that you never know when a possession on offense or defense can have an impact later on in the game."
Junior Chandra McGuire led Monroe with 10 points. Seven other Cheesemakers scored, and Mathiason hopes that kind of balance on the offensive end will continue.
Elkhorn was led in scoring by Jessica Hauser, who put up 22 points. Mathiason said that he would like to see an improvement from his team on the defensive end of the floor.
"One thing we have to keep working on is finding a way on the defensive end to get stops," he said. "Hauser had eight in the fourth. We allowed her to get a few easy baskets."
Mathiason is hopeful that his team can pick up their first win at home this Friday against Fort Atkinson.
"We have a chance to get back into our home gym," he said. "We've gotten better every game. Hopefully we'll be ready Friday night to get that first win."
Monroe (0-3) led 35-34 after three quarters, but the Elks won a back-and-forth fourth quarter to secure the victory. Monroe coach Sam Mathiason liked the way his team competed and believes that the game was a good learning experience for the Cheesemakers.
"I thought that overall we did a nice job. The effort was very, very good," Mathiason said. "It was a tough one to lose, but we have a lot to learn from this. I think the girls saw that you never know when a possession on offense or defense can have an impact later on in the game."
Junior Chandra McGuire led Monroe with 10 points. Seven other Cheesemakers scored, and Mathiason hopes that kind of balance on the offensive end will continue.
Elkhorn was led in scoring by Jessica Hauser, who put up 22 points. Mathiason said that he would like to see an improvement from his team on the defensive end of the floor.
"One thing we have to keep working on is finding a way on the defensive end to get stops," he said. "Hauser had eight in the fourth. We allowed her to get a few easy baskets."
Mathiason is hopeful that his team can pick up their first win at home this Friday against Fort Atkinson.
"We have a chance to get back into our home gym," he said. "We've gotten better every game. Hopefully we'll be ready Friday night to get that first win."
