SHULLSBURG — Top-ranked Black Hawk had to grind a bit in order to reach win No. 62 in a row. The Warriors fell behind by eight points in the opening minutes of their Jan. 9 game at No. 10 Shullsburg, only to rally and hold a 29-point lead late in the second half of their 66-49 win.
“It’s interesting and ironic that sometimes the game doesn’t work out the way it’s supposed to,” Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan said. “We were giving up some really good opportunities out of our man-to-man (defense), but when we went to our zone, I think we just disrupted where they were getting their shots and the nature of those shots and it turned the tide for sure.”
Shullsburg (11-4) opened on a 13-5 run over the first 4:35 of the game thanks to the hot shooting of Anna Wiegel. Wiegel hit four 3-pointers during the stretch and scored 17 of her team’s 21 first half points.
While Wiegel was giving Shullsburg life, do-everything guard Bailey Butler matched her output for the Warriors (8-0). Butler, a UW-Green Bay commit, had 19 first half points and finished the after noon with 26 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals.
“I feel like a lot of us seniors have played in big games, so we know what it feels like to be down at any point and we just keep our composure and we get back in it,” Butler said. The Warriors have lost just one game in her entire high school career and have reached the state tournament three times.
Butler also continued to inch her way up the school record books. She is now three points behind third-place Jen Wellnitz and five points behind sister Hannah for second on the school’s all-time scoring list. She also is Black Hawk’s all-time leader in steals and trails Wellnitz by just one assist all-time.
After the Miners led 13-5, Black Hawk went on a 13-0 run to take the lead for good, and closed out the half on a 28-8 run. In the second half, the Warriors kept up the pressure defensively and spread the ball around offensively.
“Let’s face it, any coach that doesn’t come into a game against us with the intention of slowing Bailey Butler down is probably not really paying attention. That’s why we know how important it is that other kids are ready to contribute,” Flanagan said.
Macie Stauffacher finished with 12 points on four 3s, and Kaylee Marty had 13 points for Black Hawk, which also got 7 points from Raylin Peterson and 6 from Tara Wellnitz. Wellnitz led the Warriors with 12 rebounds, and Peterson had 9. Butler also dazzled with a pair of NBA-distanced 3s.
“When defenses start compacting it in, you have to look for shooters, and Macie is always ready to shoot,” Butler said.
Wiegel led Shullsburg with 22 points, while Camden Russell had 8 and Madison Russell 7. Black Hawk’s lead reached 29 points at 66-37 with 4:43 remaining in the contest.
Two days before the Shullsburg game, the Warriors defeated Pecatonica (1-5) 84-21. Butler had 11 rebounds, 8 assists and 7 steals, plus hit six 3s on her way to a 35-point game. Peterson added 12 points and 7 boards, while Stauffacher hit three 3s and had 11 points. Marty added 9 points.
Lexi Peterson led Pecatonica with 11 points. The Warriors led 37-11 at halftime and outscored the Vikings 47-10 in the second half.
Up next for Black Hawk was a scheduled game Jan. 12 at Argyle (5-6), then a road game at No. 5 Albany (10-1) Jan. 15. Butler, who had a quadruple-double against Albany the last time the two teams met, knows that her squad still can improve quite a bit more as the season nears its culmination.
“We need to work on our buzz and our press. We need to work defensively on getting to shooters on time, because we’re a little bit slow on that,” Butler said.
