MONROE — The Cheesemakers suffered their first two Badger South losses of the season just before the holiday break, falling to Edgewood 63-55 Dec. 19 and then 44-42 to Watertown two nights later.

Against Edgewood, Monroe held a 28-24 lead at halftime, but the Crusaders, ranked seventh in the WBCA Division 3 poll, pulled off a 39-27 run in the second half.

Megan Benzschawel led the Cheesemakers with 20 points, while Taylor Jacobson and Grace Tostrud each added 10. Edgewood had four players in double figures: Ellie Iglar (16), Baluck Deang (16), Lindsay Langlois (15) and Sarah Lazar (10).

In the loss to Watertown, the Cheesemakers found themselves down 25-15 at halftime but kept fighting until the end. 

Benzschawel, a junior, finished with 28 points to lead Monroe, with Tostrud the next highest-scorer with six. Watertown’s Teya Maas had 17. Benzschawel is averaging 20 points per game this season, nearly double her production from a season ago when she was a first-team all-conference player.

Monroe (3-4 overall, 2-2 Badger South) will enter 2020 with a .500 conference record, one game behind Edgewood, Monona Grove, Watertown and Oregon, which are all 3-1 in league play. Monroe’s next game is Dec. 28 at Slinger (8-1) in a nonconference affair, with a home contest against Monona Grove slated for Jan. 4.

Brodhead 66, Whitewater 52

WHITEWATER — The Cardinals got major contributions from senior guard Carissa Purdue en route to a thrilling Rock Valley Conference win Dec. 19.

Purdue led all scorers with 22 points on 9 of 16 shooting from the field. She added five assists and four rebounds. In the post, freshman Abbie Dix scored 19 points and hauled in nine boards. Madisyn Kail had 14 points from the wing with six rebounds.

Abby Grosinske led the Whippets with 20 points.

Darlington 48, Boscobel 30

DARLINGTON — Lizzie Schwartz scored 14 and Brenna McDonald added 12 for the Redbirds in a Dec. 19 win.

Leading by just three at halftime, the Redbirds stepped it up on the defensive end in the second half, holding Boscobel to just 10 points over the final 18 minutes.

Darlington head coach Kelly Rose stepped down prior to the holiday break due to personal matters. Black Hawk graduate and former UW-Green Bay basketball star Jen Wellnitz will take over head coaching duties.

New Glarus 70, Palmyra-Eagle 22

NEW GLARUS — Jaylynn Benson and Lily Himmelmann each scored 17 points as the Glarner Knights picked up an easy win Dec. 19.

By halftime, New Glarus had run off to a 38-9 lead. The second half didn’t fare much better for visiting Palmyra-Eagle either, as the Knights outscored PE 32-13.

Shealyn Klosterman-Havens added 10 points for New Glarus, which had 10 players score in the contest.

Belleville 63, Albany 53

ALBANY — The Wildcats took a 12-point lead into halftime and walked away with a nonconference win over the Comets Dec. 20.

Jenna Shrader led Belleville with 18 points, while Erin Kittleson had 12. Brianna Dahl led Albany with 21 points and teammate Kristin O’Bel added 10.

Barneveld 44, Juda 13

BARNEVELD — The Eagles went up 27-5 at halftime and never looked back in their Dec. 20 Six Rivers East win.

Jacey Spring led Barneveld with 10 points, while RaeAnne Leister and Leah Marx each had nine. Only four Panthers scored in the game, with Triniti Elmer and Taylor Golackson leading the way with four.