FORT ATKINSON — The Cheesemakers picked up a solid win Jan. 19 by taking care of business in the second half of a 56-49 victory over Fort Atkinson.
Monroe senior Megan Benzschawel scored 19 points to lead the team, while Taylor Jacobson had a season-high 14, Lily Bobak 11 and Alyse Maurer 7.
Tyla Staude led the Blackhawks with 25 points.
Monroe is riding a 4-game winning streak and sits 5-2 on the season. The Cheesemakers were also in the middle of a six-game road-trip, but the team has since gone on pause until Feb. 6. Games against Watertown (Jan. 21), East Troy (Jan. 25), Sauk Prairie (Jan. 26), Reedsburg (Jan. 28), Janesville Parker (Feb. 2) and Madison Edgewood (Feb. 4) are canceled. Monroe resumes Feb. 6 against Watertown in the regular season finale, with the postseason set to begin with the regional tournament Feb. 9.
Barneveld 49, Pecatonica 48
BLANCHARDVILLE — The Vikings lost a heartbreaker to the Eagles Jan. 19.
Tessa Green led all scorers with 17 for Pecatonica, while Chloe Schraepfer had 14 and Lexi Peterson 11.
Elle Pechan led Barneveld with 13 points.
Pecatonica (2-7, 1-6 Six Rivers East) held a 23-19 advantage at halftime, but Barneveld (3-5, 2-4) outscored the Vikings 30-25 in the second half.
Darlington 56, Belleville 52
DARLINGTON — The Redbirds overcame a slight halftime deficit to defeat the Wildcats in a nonconference game Jan. 19.
Taylor Wedig exploded for a career-high 31 points to carry Darlington’s offense. Wedig’s previous high was 17 against Boscobel Dec. 15. Cayla Golackson scored 10 points for the Redbirds.
Belleville, which led 25-22 at the break, received a double-double from Callie Smith (11 points, 14 rebounds, 7 steals). Ava Foley led the Wildcats with 15 points, and Kenna Edge added 12.
New Glarus 69, Deerfield 38
NEW GLARUS — Knights coach Kevin Parman didn’t want to see his players have a letdown on the court after hanging with Marshall, one of the top teams in the state. Instead, the opening half was a bit lackluster for his liking during their game Jan. 18 in a win over Deerfield.
“It was the game we talked about not having after a well-fought game against a great team (Marshall),” Parman said. “How would we come out mentally?”
Parman said his girls had a slow start and gave up too many offensive rebounds — and got themselves needlessly into early foul trouble.
Despite holding a 40-25 lead at halftime, the coaches let their players know that the key was protecting the ball on offense and locking down defensively.
“We played good team defense in the second half,” said Parman after his team outscored Deerfield 29-13 over the final 18 minutes of action.
Jaylynn Benson led the Knights (12-4) with 24 points, and Lindsey Schadewalt finished the night with 20. Shealyn Klosterman-Havens added 8 for the Knights. Moli Haak led Deerfield (1-3) with 12 points.
Brodhead 56, East Troy 34
BRODHEAD — The Cardinals dominated the second half of their Jan. 18 game against the Trojans, outscoring the visitors 37-19 after the intermission.
Abbie Dix led the Cardinals with 16 points, while Kiarra Moe and Madisyn Kail each had 8. Moe, who had one 3 in the game, entered the week sixth in Division 3 in 3-point percentage at 40.8%. Dix, a sophomore, is 23rd in the state in scoring at 20.5 points per game and averages 11 rebounds each night, tied for 25th in the state.
Brodhead (9-2) was scheduled to play at Jefferson Jan. 21, then host Clinton Jan. 26.
Black Hawk 88, Juda 17
JUDA — The top-ranked Warriors led 50-4 at halftime.
Bailey Butler scored 20 of her 27 points in the first half. She added 13 assists, 9 rebounds and 9 steals. She was also 3-for-6 from the 3-point line. She leads Division 5 in 3-point percentage this year, and she leads the state in all divisions in scoring and assists.
Kaylee Marty had 21 points and 9 steals for Black Hawk (11-0, 7-0 Six Rivers East). Raylin Peterson finished with 10 points and 8 rebounds; Makayla Mau had 14 points and 6 rebounds; and Macie Stauffacher had 9 points on three 3s. Stauffacher is fifth in D5 in 3-point shooting percentage at 42.2%. Butler entered the week at 49.3%.
Maddie Smith hit two 3s and led Juda (0-9, 0-8) with 6 points.
Black Hawk’s winning streak is now at 65 games, two away from being tied at fifth all-time in state history, and six away from moving all the way up to third all-time. Pius XI Catholic’s 92-game win streak from 1988-91 is the longest in state history, with Cuba City’s 76-game run from 2005-08 second. Pius also had a 70-game streak from 1984-87, which is third all-time. New London (68, 2011-13) and Barneveld (67, 1998-2000) are fourth and fifth, respectively.
Albany 77, Johnson Creek 43
ALBANY — The third-ranked Comets bounced back from a loss to Black Hawk with a dominating performance in a nonconference contest Jan. 18.
Five Comets finished in double figures. Brianna Dahl was an assist shy of a triple-double, finishing with 20 points, 10 rebounds, 9 assists and 6 steals. Jada Flannery had 14 points, Avary Briggs finished with 11, and Kaiya Zurfluh and Alana Durtschi each had 10 points. Payton Wachholz finished with 8 points and 7 rebounds from the guard position.
The Comets (12-2), which led Johnson Creek (1-12) 41-21 at halftime, took just three 3-point attempts in the contest, missing all three. They were also just 1-for-6 from the free throw line, but shot 38 of 59 from inside the arc.
Lexi Swanson led Johnson Creek with 23 points and 10 rebounds.
