NEW GLARUS - Regardless of how it shows up on their pay stub, Tuesday was anything but an easy night at the office for Shanna Karls and Co.
Karls' shots were inexplicably popping in and out of the unforgiving iron. And with junior post Hannah Rotar mired by foul trouble, Karls had the task of guarding perhaps the toughest draw in the Capitol South in Wisconsin Heights' Ali Wilkinson.
Despite all this, the Glarner Knights' senior captain led her club with 14 points and held the 6-foot Vanguards junior to just two points in the second half of a 47-35 victory at home that provides some breathing room atop the Capitol South.
"It was just a matter of keeping the ball away from (Wilkinson)," Karls said. "That can shut their offense down because everything runs through her."
But her skipper had some more in-depth analysis of how his captain flawlessly defended Wilkinson's favorite workspace at the high post.
"That's a tough spot to defend where you need to hold the post in the front and the back, but she does a great job of getting right in the middle where she needs to be because she's so strong," Knights coach Braden Rindy said.
Karls got a feeling her workload would rapidly expand as Rotar picked up her second and third fouls in the final minute of the first half, a half in which Wilkinson dropped in 14 of her game-high 16 points. As a result, Heights (7-5, 2-3 Capitol South) used a 7-2 half-closing tear to even things at 22-22 at the break.
"We pretty much kept them in the game by fouling," Karls said. "We have a tendency to not stay straight up."
Rotar re-entered midway through the third but turned around 25 seconds later when she picked up a fourth foul. The Knights (9-3, 5-1 Capitol South), however, were undaunted as they rattled off a 9-0 run to close the quarter and seize a 37-31 advantage.
While Karls provided the senior savvy, sophomore guard Michelle Preston continued to emerge as a steady scoring threat. With her club trailing 31-28, she swished a rainmaking triple from left of the circle.
"I needed my team to step up and hit those shots," Preston said. "Dani (Pickett) hits a lot of those shots, so girls jump at her. I know it leaves me open and they have to pick their poison."
After four points by Karls sustained the run, Preston capped it with a steal and a layup off a textbook give-and-go play along with point guard Kaitlin Schluter on the ensuing breakout.
Preston took pointers off her all-conference sister, Rachel, last season, a big reason she's around to key such momentum-swinging plays.
"She was always a great defensive player and taught me a lot about hustle," Preston said. "Hustle and defense is what got me a spot on the team."
Whereas the Vanguards relentlessly pounded the paint at the end of the first half, their advantage in the foul category never materialized in the second half.
"We should've taken advantage of it," Heights coach Suzanne Eskola said. "New Glarus just came back out to win this game and we didn't show up."
Moments after Wilkinson swatted her fifth shot of the contest with New Glarus nursing a 39-35 lead midway through the fourth, the ball found its way to the top of the key, where Preston was again unflappable. The sophomore coolly splashed another triple, providing the coup de gras.
Schluter hit four free throws to render things completely on ice and finished right on Karls' heels with 12 points.
The Knights hope to extend their full-game lead on 3-1 Cambridge on Friday night when they travel to Waterloo and the Blue Jays head to Marshall.
Karls' shots were inexplicably popping in and out of the unforgiving iron. And with junior post Hannah Rotar mired by foul trouble, Karls had the task of guarding perhaps the toughest draw in the Capitol South in Wisconsin Heights' Ali Wilkinson.
Despite all this, the Glarner Knights' senior captain led her club with 14 points and held the 6-foot Vanguards junior to just two points in the second half of a 47-35 victory at home that provides some breathing room atop the Capitol South.
"It was just a matter of keeping the ball away from (Wilkinson)," Karls said. "That can shut their offense down because everything runs through her."
But her skipper had some more in-depth analysis of how his captain flawlessly defended Wilkinson's favorite workspace at the high post.
"That's a tough spot to defend where you need to hold the post in the front and the back, but she does a great job of getting right in the middle where she needs to be because she's so strong," Knights coach Braden Rindy said.
Karls got a feeling her workload would rapidly expand as Rotar picked up her second and third fouls in the final minute of the first half, a half in which Wilkinson dropped in 14 of her game-high 16 points. As a result, Heights (7-5, 2-3 Capitol South) used a 7-2 half-closing tear to even things at 22-22 at the break.
"We pretty much kept them in the game by fouling," Karls said. "We have a tendency to not stay straight up."
Rotar re-entered midway through the third but turned around 25 seconds later when she picked up a fourth foul. The Knights (9-3, 5-1 Capitol South), however, were undaunted as they rattled off a 9-0 run to close the quarter and seize a 37-31 advantage.
While Karls provided the senior savvy, sophomore guard Michelle Preston continued to emerge as a steady scoring threat. With her club trailing 31-28, she swished a rainmaking triple from left of the circle.
"I needed my team to step up and hit those shots," Preston said. "Dani (Pickett) hits a lot of those shots, so girls jump at her. I know it leaves me open and they have to pick their poison."
After four points by Karls sustained the run, Preston capped it with a steal and a layup off a textbook give-and-go play along with point guard Kaitlin Schluter on the ensuing breakout.
Preston took pointers off her all-conference sister, Rachel, last season, a big reason she's around to key such momentum-swinging plays.
"She was always a great defensive player and taught me a lot about hustle," Preston said. "Hustle and defense is what got me a spot on the team."
Whereas the Vanguards relentlessly pounded the paint at the end of the first half, their advantage in the foul category never materialized in the second half.
"We should've taken advantage of it," Heights coach Suzanne Eskola said. "New Glarus just came back out to win this game and we didn't show up."
Moments after Wilkinson swatted her fifth shot of the contest with New Glarus nursing a 39-35 lead midway through the fourth, the ball found its way to the top of the key, where Preston was again unflappable. The sophomore coolly splashed another triple, providing the coup de gras.
Schluter hit four free throws to render things completely on ice and finished right on Karls' heels with 12 points.
The Knights hope to extend their full-game lead on 3-1 Cambridge on Friday night when they travel to Waterloo and the Blue Jays head to Marshall.
