SOUTH WAYNE — Black Hawk pulled out a 59-36 nonconference win over Clinton on Monday, Dec. 2, but that 23-point margin could have been even greater. The Warriors shot just 32.4% from the field, including 32% from either block.
“Coming into every game, we know that we’re not going to get the (foul) calls that we’d like,” Black Hawk head coach Kaylee Meyers said of the missed, contested shots. “However, we have to play through that, adjust to the calls and really battle through with our physicality. We want to use it the correct way, not just letting them pull us back from our shots.”
But that’s not to say the Warriors didn’t attack the basket. They put up 52 shots in the contest, which began with a 4-0 lead with buckets from Maddy Lange. If she didn’t score, she drew a foul on her way to the basket and went to the free-throw line. Lange’s old-fashioned 3-point play put Black Hawk ahead 10-1 four minutes into the game.
“Being a post player, they typically put their bigger girls on me,” Lange said. “I’m quick for being a post player, so I use that to my advantage quite a bit.”
Black Hawk’s aggressive play came at a cost, though, as Clinton reached bonus midway through the frame. Although the Cougars couldn’t convert from the charity stripe, the fouls hurt Black Hawk’s bench — which had just four players. And there’s not a JV player to turn to either. The Warriors are just nine strong in the entire program.
“We’re definitely still learning through those curves of playing solid man-to-man defense, but also being smart. The lower numbers will hurt at times; however, we have to be smart and play through it. We have to know how to battle through those foul troubles and be smart enough to keep our hands back.”
Luckily, Hailey Wellnitz’s drive to the lane drew enough defenders to leave Reese Anderson open on the block. Her bucket gave Black Hawk a double-digit, 14-3 lead.
The advantage could have been greater, as the Warriors were just 3-for-12 from the free-throw line in the first half. They also missed multiple layups — the period ending with three missed bunnies from Lange after getting her own rebound. Regardless, Black Hawk still took a 21-12 lead into the locker room.
Clinton cut that lead to just six points six minutes into the new frame, as the Cougars began to feed the ball into the post. Jasmine Maly lobbed a pass over Wellnitz to teammate Macy Hinz for two points. On the next possession, Hinz got the ball again and drew a foul on Wellnitz.
That opened up outside shooting for Clinton’s guards, as Maly and Natalie Bell drained 3-pointers.
“We realized that we needed to fix how we were guarding those posts, so instead of denying from that top side, we denied from the low side,” Meyer said. “That way we had help coming from that middle. We probably should’ve made the adjustment sooner.”
The Warriors responded by going on a 12-3 run. Mya Milz’s drive and kick to Lange put Black Hawk ahead by double-digits once again. Anderson and Maddy Place then tacked on a pair of free throws each.
“I know if I drive, two or three girls are coming to me — Reese, Maddy — anybody’s going to be out there to kick to them,” Lange said of the Warriors’ selfless style of play. “That’s about having court vision, which is really important when it comes to situations like that.”
That lead quickly ballooned to 49-28 as Lange took the ball all the way to the hoop and kissed it off the glass for two. The game ended on a transition bucket for Anderson, assisted by Place, for the Warriors’ largest lead — 23 points.
ALBANY-MONTICELLO 57,
BLACK HAWK 42
SOUTH WAYNE — The Warriors turned the ball over 21 times, leading to 16 points for the second-ranked Space Stallions in a Six Rivers East contest on Dec. 3. The only edge Black Hawk had against Albany-Monticello was in defensive rebounds 24-15.
AM limited Maddy Lange, who scored 19 points against Clinton, to just two. Instead, Maddy Place stepped up for a team-best 16 points. Hailey Wellnitz led on the glass with nine rebounds.
Three Space Stallions scored in double figures, led by Dalana Trumpy with 17 points. Abby Hollis and Anna Ellinger followed with 11 points each. Trumpy also grabbed a team-best eight rebounds, while Hollis and Molly Olson orchestrated more offense with five assists and four steals each.
