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Ellinwood junior Sophie Hayes grabs a rebound against Little River on Friday. The Lady Eagles have won six straight heading into Tuesday's match-up against unbeaten St. John. (Mike Courson / January 6, 2013) |
Only half the MCAA basketball teams were in action in the first week of 2013. The Ellinwood girls picked up a signature win by blowing out Little River 67-42.
Ellinwood
The Lady Eagle basketball team hit the break with five straight wins against struggling teams. The first game back featured a chance for Ellinwood to pick up a signature win with its new and improved defense. It did just that, leading Little River (5-3) 20-2 after one quarter en route to a 67-42 win. The Lady Eagles (6-2) led 41-15 by halftime, and upped the gap to 65-30 in the fourth quarter. Sophomore Rachel Doll hit 5-of-8 three-point tries to score 25 points for the second time this season. Junior post Kelsea Ward added 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including two threes. Ward also led the team with seven rebounds. Junior Sophie Hayes added 12 points, seven steals, and four assists, and junior Amanda Tucker hit 4-of-5 shots inside to finish with eight points off the bench.
The Eagle boys fell to 3-5 with a 50-31 loss to No. 10 Little River. Leading scorer and rebounder Kyle Blakeslee was sidelined just two minutes into the game with two charges. The Redskins took advantage by out-rebounding the Eagles 11-3 in the opening stanza, and leading 24-11 by halftime. Senior Patrick Ringering scored seven of his team-high 13 points in the first half. Blakeslee came back to finish with 11 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
Larned
The Indian basketball teams struggled to two losses in their first games of 2013 at Southwestern Heights on Friday. The boys had the better start, jumping out to a 17-14 lead against the Mustangs after one quarter. It was all downhill from there. Heights turned that deficit into a 27-24 halftime lead, then outscored the Indians 31-25 in the second half to hold on for the win. The Larned boys fall to 2-6.
The Lady Indians are also 2-6 after a 46-36 loss to the Mustangs. Larned managed just seven points in each of the first two quarters to trail 19-14 at the half. The Lady Indians matched those 14 points in the third quarter, but Heights scored 16 in the frame. Nine Larned players scored in the contest, led by Jessie Johnson’s eight points. Maci Perez added six points.
