MONROE — The Lady Cheesemakers dominated Fort Atkinson on the road two days before bowing to Morton (Illinois) in a nonconference game last week.

Monroe knocked off the Blackhawks 52-18 Nov. 29 and lost to Morton 57-40 Dec. 1.

“We saw some good signs, but there are things to work on,” Monroe head coach Sam Mathiason said.

In the win over Fort Atkinson, Sydney Hilliard scored 20 points to lead the Cheesemakers, which also got 11 points from Grace Tostrud, seven from Megan Benzschawel and six from Emily Benzschawel. Anna Schoenike led the Blackhawks with 11 points.

“To hold them to 18 is definitely something we did a good job with,” Mathiason said. “And our offense found some pace.”

The Cheesemakers collected 14 steals in the game, including eight from Hilliard, who also led the team with six rebounds. Monroe led 26-9 at halftime.

In the loss to Morton, the offense struggled to show up early, only to trim the deficit going into the half at 28-23.

“Morton, they are really good,” Mathiason said. “They started the game on a 14-5 run and scored on their first seven possessions. I was proud of our girls for battling back.”

Morton stayed steady and dominated the second half. A year ago, the two teams played to within a point with the Cheesemakers coming up short. Morton’s only three losses the past two seasons were to the same team — Illinois’ No. 1 ranked team in 3A and defending state champion Peoria Richwoods.

“They came out to a strong start in the second half. They move with a fast pace and executed well,” Mathiason said.

Hilliard, who will play for Wisconsin next season, led the Cheesemakers with 14 points. Morton’s Tenley Dowell, who will be at Butler next year, led her team with 14. Peyton Dearing and Katie Krupa, two other highly regarded players, scored 12 and 11 points.

Monroe was 5 for 5 from the charity stripe, while Morton was 12 of 16.

“It was one of those matchups early in the season to see where you are at,” Mathiason said.

The schedule for Monroe (4-1, 2-0 Badger South) doesn’t get much easier, as the Cheesemakers were scheduled to host Watertown (4-0, 2-0) Dec. 4 and will play a 4 p.m. game Dec. 8 at Stoughton (4-0, 2-0).

“Now we have to find the next conference win,” Mathiason said.