WAUNAKEE - The Monroe girls basketball team had a tough time keeping up with the high scoring offensive attack of Waunakee on Friday night, as the Cheesemakers fell to the Warriors, 84-41.
Waunakee took control from the get-go, taking a 20-4 lead at the end of the first quarter. Waunakee expanded their lead to 28 points at halftime, and led 69-28 after three quarters. The fourth quarter was a bit closer, with the Warriors only outscoring the Cheesemakers 15-13.
"Waunakee presses full-court, all over the place. The number of possessions is high because of the way they play," Monroe coach Sam Mathiason said. "In the second, third and fourth quarters, they switched to a zone. We did a nice job of making some extra passes in those quarters.
"Waunakee is a very good team. I thought that we kept battling even though the game was kinda out of reach. We kept working on offense and got some better shots in the second half."
Mathiason said that the Cheesemakers had a tough time handling Waunakee's press, and that the Warriors shot the ball very well, especially from three-point land.
"Their full court press made us turn it over," Mathiason said. "They made 10 threes; nine different people made a three. They have that many that can shoot the ball. They look to get the ball and shoot it quick."
Kirsten Vetterli led Monroe with nine points. Chandra McGuire was the next leading scorer for the Cheese with eight points, while Ellie Grossen and Jess Bell both chipped in six.
Monroe (1-16, 0-8 in the Badger South) hosts conference leader Monona Grove on Tuesday. Mathiason is hopeful that is team can learn some things from this game as they prepare to take on the Silver Eagles.
"The big thing right now is taking the next steps and getting some confidence," he said. "Monona Grove is another team that likes to press, so we'll try to take some things and learn from tonight."
Monticello 50, Albany 23
MONTICELLO - Stingy defense and patient offense paved the way for the Monticello girls basketball team in their 50-23 victory over Albany Friday night.
After a quarter of play, Monticello held a 15-7 lead. The Ponies expanded their lead to 23-9 at halftime. Monticello outscored the Comets 27-14 in the second half. Monticello coach Lori Brokopp said the key to her team's solid defensive effort was ball pressure.
"We put a lot of ball pressure out on them right away," she said. "We were able to pick their pockets a little bit. Early on we kinda took advantage of our quick feet and got some steals and were able to get up the floor."
Offensively, Brokopp said that staying patient against Albany's aggressive zone defense was essential.
"I thought we did a really nice job on offense," Brokopp said. "Albany comes out in a tight 2-3 zone 'D'. They don't give you a lot inside. We were incredibly patient. We moved the ball well. Swung the ball and got it to both sides of the court. We got some good looks that way."
Kirstie Kauk led Albany with seven points. Alyssah Kubly led Monticello with 16 points and Marissa Berg added 12 for the Ponies.
"(Kubly) came out right away and had eight in the first quarter, including a three. She's really good at knowing when to attack those openings, which creates opportunities for her and to dish it out," said Brokopp. "Marissa was good at getting inside and getting offensive rebounds and getting some points that way."
Albany (4-13, 1-8 in the Six Rivers East) has a Six Rivers crossover game in Potosi on Monday. Monticello (12-5, 6-2) is also back in action on Monday, when they will travel to Black Hawk for a conference clash with the Warriors. Brokopp said the focus in that game for the Ponies will be trying to contain Black Hawk's Jen Wellnitz
"They have a good team over there," Brokopp said. "Jen Wellnitz is the leader of that team. "We're not gonna completely stop an athlete like that, but try to contain her ... she's gonna get her looks, but do our jobs against the other four. We'll run our offense and continue to be patient, yet attack."
Black Hawk 48, Pecatonica 40
SOUTH WAYNE - The Black Hawk girls basketball team rebounded from a big loss to Barneveld on Tuesday night with a 48-40 victory over Six Rivers East rival Pecatonica.
Black Hawk got out to a 15-9 lead after a quarter of play and led 27-16 at halftime.
"We shot it okay (in the first half)," said Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan. "We made it difficult for them to score. They just weren't really getting a lot of open looks. We caused some turnovers that we turned into points in transition."
Pecatonica didn't back down, though, as the Vikings fought back in the third quarter to draw within five entering the final quarter.
"They've had a lot of games where they hang around. They have a lot of kids who have no fears shooting the basketball," Flanagan said of Pecatonica. "In the third quarter, they were able to get some kids freed up off some screens. They did some things differently on 'D' to take away Jen (Wellnitz). We left some shots unfinished. It's a game of runs, and they found a way in the third to hit some tough shots."
Pecatonica's leading scorer was Emily Scoville, with seven points. Lizzy Britt and Michelle Francois both scored six for the Vikings. Jen Wellnitz led Black Hawk with 15 points, and she was joined in double figures by Mikayla Sigafus and Abby Schiferl, who scored 12 and 10, respectively.
"It was a big night for Sigafus. I thought she played as well as she has after coming back from her wrist injury," Flanagan said. "It was senior night, so for Abby, our only senior, to come out and have a nice game offensively... that's the way you want it to happen."
Pecatonica (7-11, 3-7) is off until next Thursday, when they will take on Monticello. Black Hawk will get a shot at Monticello before that, though, as the Warriors host the Ponies with second place in the Six Rivers East on the line.
"They are a team with multiple weapons," Flanagan said of Monticello. "(Marissa) Berg is one of the best in conference. (Alyssah) Kubly is a nice shooter. Their sophomore class is pretty nice. We'll have to be very fundamental on the defensive end. Offensively, we'll have to do what we did tonight. We did a good job of finding kids who had the hot hand. It's gonna be a battle they're a nice ball club, and they've obviously scratching and clawing for the same number two spot in conference that we are."
Marshall 54, New Glarus 52
NEW GLARUS - A late lead got away from the New Glarus girls basketball team in a crucial game with Capitol South rival Marshall.
The Glarner Knights held a 10 point lead with 3 minutes to play, but the Cardinals came charging back to steal the win and take sole possession of first place in the conference.
"We were up ten with 3 minutes left," said New Glarus coach Megan Scheele. "We played a little timid at the end. We changed our style a little. Marshall kept playing and fighting back. We were 3 of 10 from the free throw line. We just didn't finish it out. We had 'em right where we wanted and just didn't finish."
New Glarus led 17-15 after the first quarter and 30-27 at halftime. The Glarner Knights expanded their lead to nine points entering the fourth quarter, before Marshall made their comeback. Scheele said her team did a good job of starting out strong.
"Last time we played them (a 51-42 loss on Jan. 10), we got down 16-4 in the first. Our goal was to come out strong, and we did. We did everything right until the fourth quarter. You could the change in our style of play. I told them after, don't change it because you're up."
Although this was a tough loss to take, Scheele said New Glarus (10-7, 6-2) needs to learn from this game and come back strong.
"Marsahll is in sole possession of first place," Scheele said. "This was our opportunity, and it got away. But now we have to see what we can do to take what we learned from this game and get better. This was a big dagger to the heart, but we have to rebound strong."
Courtney Feller led New Glarus with 12 points. Other leading scorers for the Glarner Knights were Cassie Feller with 10 points, Sierra Watrud with nine, and both Mandi Sargent and Lexi Hanson with eight.
Waunakee took control from the get-go, taking a 20-4 lead at the end of the first quarter. Waunakee expanded their lead to 28 points at halftime, and led 69-28 after three quarters. The fourth quarter was a bit closer, with the Warriors only outscoring the Cheesemakers 15-13.
"Waunakee presses full-court, all over the place. The number of possessions is high because of the way they play," Monroe coach Sam Mathiason said. "In the second, third and fourth quarters, they switched to a zone. We did a nice job of making some extra passes in those quarters.
"Waunakee is a very good team. I thought that we kept battling even though the game was kinda out of reach. We kept working on offense and got some better shots in the second half."
Mathiason said that the Cheesemakers had a tough time handling Waunakee's press, and that the Warriors shot the ball very well, especially from three-point land.
"Their full court press made us turn it over," Mathiason said. "They made 10 threes; nine different people made a three. They have that many that can shoot the ball. They look to get the ball and shoot it quick."
Kirsten Vetterli led Monroe with nine points. Chandra McGuire was the next leading scorer for the Cheese with eight points, while Ellie Grossen and Jess Bell both chipped in six.
Monroe (1-16, 0-8 in the Badger South) hosts conference leader Monona Grove on Tuesday. Mathiason is hopeful that is team can learn some things from this game as they prepare to take on the Silver Eagles.
"The big thing right now is taking the next steps and getting some confidence," he said. "Monona Grove is another team that likes to press, so we'll try to take some things and learn from tonight."
Monticello 50, Albany 23
MONTICELLO - Stingy defense and patient offense paved the way for the Monticello girls basketball team in their 50-23 victory over Albany Friday night.
After a quarter of play, Monticello held a 15-7 lead. The Ponies expanded their lead to 23-9 at halftime. Monticello outscored the Comets 27-14 in the second half. Monticello coach Lori Brokopp said the key to her team's solid defensive effort was ball pressure.
"We put a lot of ball pressure out on them right away," she said. "We were able to pick their pockets a little bit. Early on we kinda took advantage of our quick feet and got some steals and were able to get up the floor."
Offensively, Brokopp said that staying patient against Albany's aggressive zone defense was essential.
"I thought we did a really nice job on offense," Brokopp said. "Albany comes out in a tight 2-3 zone 'D'. They don't give you a lot inside. We were incredibly patient. We moved the ball well. Swung the ball and got it to both sides of the court. We got some good looks that way."
Kirstie Kauk led Albany with seven points. Alyssah Kubly led Monticello with 16 points and Marissa Berg added 12 for the Ponies.
"(Kubly) came out right away and had eight in the first quarter, including a three. She's really good at knowing when to attack those openings, which creates opportunities for her and to dish it out," said Brokopp. "Marissa was good at getting inside and getting offensive rebounds and getting some points that way."
Albany (4-13, 1-8 in the Six Rivers East) has a Six Rivers crossover game in Potosi on Monday. Monticello (12-5, 6-2) is also back in action on Monday, when they will travel to Black Hawk for a conference clash with the Warriors. Brokopp said the focus in that game for the Ponies will be trying to contain Black Hawk's Jen Wellnitz
"They have a good team over there," Brokopp said. "Jen Wellnitz is the leader of that team. "We're not gonna completely stop an athlete like that, but try to contain her ... she's gonna get her looks, but do our jobs against the other four. We'll run our offense and continue to be patient, yet attack."
Black Hawk 48, Pecatonica 40
SOUTH WAYNE - The Black Hawk girls basketball team rebounded from a big loss to Barneveld on Tuesday night with a 48-40 victory over Six Rivers East rival Pecatonica.
Black Hawk got out to a 15-9 lead after a quarter of play and led 27-16 at halftime.
"We shot it okay (in the first half)," said Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan. "We made it difficult for them to score. They just weren't really getting a lot of open looks. We caused some turnovers that we turned into points in transition."
Pecatonica didn't back down, though, as the Vikings fought back in the third quarter to draw within five entering the final quarter.
"They've had a lot of games where they hang around. They have a lot of kids who have no fears shooting the basketball," Flanagan said of Pecatonica. "In the third quarter, they were able to get some kids freed up off some screens. They did some things differently on 'D' to take away Jen (Wellnitz). We left some shots unfinished. It's a game of runs, and they found a way in the third to hit some tough shots."
Pecatonica's leading scorer was Emily Scoville, with seven points. Lizzy Britt and Michelle Francois both scored six for the Vikings. Jen Wellnitz led Black Hawk with 15 points, and she was joined in double figures by Mikayla Sigafus and Abby Schiferl, who scored 12 and 10, respectively.
"It was a big night for Sigafus. I thought she played as well as she has after coming back from her wrist injury," Flanagan said. "It was senior night, so for Abby, our only senior, to come out and have a nice game offensively... that's the way you want it to happen."
Pecatonica (7-11, 3-7) is off until next Thursday, when they will take on Monticello. Black Hawk will get a shot at Monticello before that, though, as the Warriors host the Ponies with second place in the Six Rivers East on the line.
"They are a team with multiple weapons," Flanagan said of Monticello. "(Marissa) Berg is one of the best in conference. (Alyssah) Kubly is a nice shooter. Their sophomore class is pretty nice. We'll have to be very fundamental on the defensive end. Offensively, we'll have to do what we did tonight. We did a good job of finding kids who had the hot hand. It's gonna be a battle they're a nice ball club, and they've obviously scratching and clawing for the same number two spot in conference that we are."
Marshall 54, New Glarus 52
NEW GLARUS - A late lead got away from the New Glarus girls basketball team in a crucial game with Capitol South rival Marshall.
The Glarner Knights held a 10 point lead with 3 minutes to play, but the Cardinals came charging back to steal the win and take sole possession of first place in the conference.
"We were up ten with 3 minutes left," said New Glarus coach Megan Scheele. "We played a little timid at the end. We changed our style a little. Marshall kept playing and fighting back. We were 3 of 10 from the free throw line. We just didn't finish it out. We had 'em right where we wanted and just didn't finish."
New Glarus led 17-15 after the first quarter and 30-27 at halftime. The Glarner Knights expanded their lead to nine points entering the fourth quarter, before Marshall made their comeback. Scheele said her team did a good job of starting out strong.
"Last time we played them (a 51-42 loss on Jan. 10), we got down 16-4 in the first. Our goal was to come out strong, and we did. We did everything right until the fourth quarter. You could the change in our style of play. I told them after, don't change it because you're up."
Although this was a tough loss to take, Scheele said New Glarus (10-7, 6-2) needs to learn from this game and come back strong.
"Marsahll is in sole possession of first place," Scheele said. "This was our opportunity, and it got away. But now we have to see what we can do to take what we learned from this game and get better. This was a big dagger to the heart, but we have to rebound strong."
Courtney Feller led New Glarus with 12 points. Other leading scorers for the Glarner Knights were Cassie Feller with 10 points, Sierra Watrud with nine, and both Mandi Sargent and Lexi Hanson with eight.
