MONROE - As a point guard, Molly Hlubek's primary job is making sure the Monroe girls basketball team's offense runs smoothly.
The senior is quite capable of scoring when needed, too.
Hlubek showed that in impressive fashion Tuesday night, when she scored all nine of her points in the fourth quarter to lift the Cheesemakers to a 49-45 win over Stoughton.
Monroe senior Brooke McBain scored a game-high 23 points, but it was Hlubek's clutch performance that sealed the win. She hit four straight free throws in the final 2 minutes as the Cheesemakers withstood the Vikings' rally.
"I felt like there was more pressure to bring our score up," Hlubek said. "On the free throw line, I just had to concentrate and I knew my team was behind me. You never really feel comfortable during the game. We kept fighting, tried our best and we came out on top."
Hlubek hit a jumper with 4 minutes, 30 seconds left to give the Cheesemakers (3-7, 1-3 Badger South) a 42-30 lead.
The Vikings erased a 12-point deficit by getting hot from 3-point range. Stoughton junior Tessa Mersberger scored a team-high 16 points and hit four 3-pointers to spark the comeback.
Stoughton's Patricia Dumas hit a 3-pointer and with 1:42 left to cut the Cheesemakers' lead to 45-42.
Just when it appeared Monroe's victory was secured, Dumas drove to the basket, hit the field goal and was fouled with seven seconds left. She made the free throw to convert a three-point play and Monroe's lead to three, 48-45.
"Playing with the lead and being able to handle that takes experience and understanding," Monroe coach Sam Mathiason said. "I knew we had not been in that situation many times before and I wanted to see how we would handle that. We just really had to be able to finish and we did.
"We knew it was important to get that first conference win. I don't know if you can ever say it's must-win. You can't get the second win until you get the first one."
Both teams got off to rocky shooting starts in the first half. The Vikings started 0-for-7 and went scoreless for nearly 6 minutes.
The Cheesemakers started finding their stride in the second quarter. McBain scored down low and junior Briana Katzenberger scored on a drive to give the Cheesemakers a 16-12 lead.
McBain hit a 3-pointer at the end of the second quarter to give Monroe a 21-16 halftime lead.
It was a short-lived advantage for the Cheesemakers.
Stoughton junior Megan Robson scored down low and Mersberger drilled a 3-pointer to tie the game at 21 early in the third quarter.
But Monroe, after shooting 38 percent in the first half (8-for-21), shot 50 percent (8-for-16) in the second half and found a way to get to the free throw line. The Cheesemakers closed the third quarter on a 7-2 spurt and took a 34-27 lead on senior Chelsea Haffele's layup.
That set the stage for Hlubek to take over in the fourth quarter.
McBain said she felt comfortable early in the fourth quarter when the Cheesemakers were able to build a 12-point lead.
"Mersberger hit those 3-pointers and then I started to worry," McBain said. "I just knew we had to keep our energy level up. I knew they were (near) us in the (standings), and they beat Oregon. We wanted to come out and show that we could beat them."
Mathiason is encouraging other players to step up and take shots when they have the opportunities.
"We can't just rely on Brooke and her ability to score," Mathiason said. "We have to find other scorers. I think she (Hlubek) has been looking for her shot and looking to score more. The more she does that, it will help the team."
Hopefully, this will build her confidence."
The senior is quite capable of scoring when needed, too.
Hlubek showed that in impressive fashion Tuesday night, when she scored all nine of her points in the fourth quarter to lift the Cheesemakers to a 49-45 win over Stoughton.
Monroe senior Brooke McBain scored a game-high 23 points, but it was Hlubek's clutch performance that sealed the win. She hit four straight free throws in the final 2 minutes as the Cheesemakers withstood the Vikings' rally.
"I felt like there was more pressure to bring our score up," Hlubek said. "On the free throw line, I just had to concentrate and I knew my team was behind me. You never really feel comfortable during the game. We kept fighting, tried our best and we came out on top."
Hlubek hit a jumper with 4 minutes, 30 seconds left to give the Cheesemakers (3-7, 1-3 Badger South) a 42-30 lead.
The Vikings erased a 12-point deficit by getting hot from 3-point range. Stoughton junior Tessa Mersberger scored a team-high 16 points and hit four 3-pointers to spark the comeback.
Stoughton's Patricia Dumas hit a 3-pointer and with 1:42 left to cut the Cheesemakers' lead to 45-42.
Just when it appeared Monroe's victory was secured, Dumas drove to the basket, hit the field goal and was fouled with seven seconds left. She made the free throw to convert a three-point play and Monroe's lead to three, 48-45.
"Playing with the lead and being able to handle that takes experience and understanding," Monroe coach Sam Mathiason said. "I knew we had not been in that situation many times before and I wanted to see how we would handle that. We just really had to be able to finish and we did.
"We knew it was important to get that first conference win. I don't know if you can ever say it's must-win. You can't get the second win until you get the first one."
Both teams got off to rocky shooting starts in the first half. The Vikings started 0-for-7 and went scoreless for nearly 6 minutes.
The Cheesemakers started finding their stride in the second quarter. McBain scored down low and junior Briana Katzenberger scored on a drive to give the Cheesemakers a 16-12 lead.
McBain hit a 3-pointer at the end of the second quarter to give Monroe a 21-16 halftime lead.
It was a short-lived advantage for the Cheesemakers.
Stoughton junior Megan Robson scored down low and Mersberger drilled a 3-pointer to tie the game at 21 early in the third quarter.
But Monroe, after shooting 38 percent in the first half (8-for-21), shot 50 percent (8-for-16) in the second half and found a way to get to the free throw line. The Cheesemakers closed the third quarter on a 7-2 spurt and took a 34-27 lead on senior Chelsea Haffele's layup.
That set the stage for Hlubek to take over in the fourth quarter.
McBain said she felt comfortable early in the fourth quarter when the Cheesemakers were able to build a 12-point lead.
"Mersberger hit those 3-pointers and then I started to worry," McBain said. "I just knew we had to keep our energy level up. I knew they were (near) us in the (standings), and they beat Oregon. We wanted to come out and show that we could beat them."
Mathiason is encouraging other players to step up and take shots when they have the opportunities.
"We can't just rely on Brooke and her ability to score," Mathiason said. "We have to find other scorers. I think she (Hlubek) has been looking for her shot and looking to score more. The more she does that, it will help the team."
Hopefully, this will build her confidence."
