SOUTH WAYNE — With a gameplan in place, Black Hawk defeated Shullsburg 45-31 in its home opener on Monday, Nov. 20. 

The Warriors scouted the Miners heavily and knew that if they were going to win, they would need to attack forward Taylor Russell. In her previous game, the junior had 19 rebounds, five deflections and three steals against Darlington on Nov. 17.

“We knew it was going to be tough. Our gameplan was to go after Taylor Russell right away,” Black Hawk head coach Steve Herbst said. “We got her in foul trouble. If they could have gotten her to stay on the floor longer, it would have been different.”

In fact, the first whistle of the game was a foul on Taylor Russell, as Shullsburg opened in a full-court press. Black Hawk kept its foot on the gas offensively, as Mya Milz and Kendra Haldiman drained back-to-back 3-pointers for a 6-0 lead.

Although Taylor Russell put her team on the board with a free throw, she picked up her second foul — a charge — just five minutes into the game.

With an important body on the Shullsburg bench, the Warriors extended their lead to 10-3, prompting the Miners’ second timeout. 

This time, Black Hawk attacked Courtney Thyen. The freshman forward picked up two fouls in less than two minutes, resulting in two points for the Warriors. Black Hawk doubled up Shullsburg, 16-8, with a untouched bucket from Maddy Lange. 

With an 8-point deficit, Shullsburg was forced to put Taylor Russell back in. Unfortunately for the Miners, Taylor Russell picked up her third foul — another charge — with five minutes left in the first half.

Black Hawk took advantage once again. Kiera Haldiman grabbed an offensive rebound and dished it to Reese Anderson for two. On the next possession, Cheatham cut through the lane and received a pass from Kendra Haldiman for another bucket. 

Although Shullsburg scored the last four points of the half, Black Hawk took a 23-14 lead into the locker room.

While the Miners opened the first frame in a full-court press, they entered the second half in a zone, giving Black Hawk yet another defensive challenge to overcome.

“It forced us to be ready. It made us more well-rounded,” Black Hawk junior Maddy Lange said. “We executed well. We did exactly what we needed to do.”

Lange drew Taylor Russell’s fourth foul less than two minutes into the fresh period, scoring in the process. To complete the 3-point play, Lange drained her free throw. Moments later, Milz found Lange on a side-out play for another two points to go up 31-16.

Despite Thyen picking up her third and fourth fouls, Shullsburg got back within 10 points. Olivia Brown drew a foul on Anderson and made both of her free throws. Camden Russell, the reigning Six Rivers West Player of the Year, then scored in transition, prompting a Warrior timeout.

The Miners kept their foot on the gas, as Taylor Russell went to the line after a foul from Kendra Haldiman. Taylor Russell made both of her shots, trimming Black Hawk’s lead to 33-23.

Just as Shullsburg was gaining momentum — drawing two fouls on Hailey Wellnitz in a matter of a minute — Taylor Russell fouled out of the game. She closed out just too far on Cheatham shooting a 3-pointer. Cheatham put the nail in the coffin, making all three of her free-throw attempts for a 41-24 lead.

“Our bench players really came to play, especially Veronica Cheatham. She was knocking down all of those free throws they were giving to her,” Lange said. “We needed that.”

Although Black Hawk committed four fouls in a span of one minute, Shullsburg was unable to make the most of its opportunities. The Miners made four of their seven shots, but Thyen picked up her fifth foul with five minutes left.

With two Shullsburg players out of the game and a 43-31 lead, Warriors’ point guards Milz and Maddy Place played keep-away for the remaining two minutes. The game ended with a 2-for-2 trip to the line for Milz and a 45-31 victory for Black Hawk.

“It was super nice. They knocked us out in volleyball, so we were coming back for them. We were ready. It felt great after that tough loss last week,” Lange said, referencing Black Hawk’s 3-0 loss to Shullsburg in a WIAA volleyball regional and the Warriors’ 52-50 overtime loss to Brodhead on Nov. 17.

Lange led the Warriors with 11 points. Cheatham followed with nine points, including a 7-for-9 performance at the free-throw line. As a team, Black Hawk shot 74% from the charity stripe. 

Camden Russell led all scorers with 12 points, including two 3-pointers. Brown followed with nine points, going 3-for-6 from the free-throw line.