Central girls beat Starmont, but struggle against MFL MarMac
Haley Frieden tries to dribble around Bulldog defender Lakota Morrissey. (Photos by Bev Hamann)
Delaney Scherf attempts to pass the ball surrounded by Bulldog defenders. Central lost the game 58-29.
By Willis Patenaude, Times-Register
The Central girls basketball team completed another up and down week, handling Starmont with ease, 49-31, but following it up with a 58-29 loss against a dominant MFL MarMac team.
The Warriors put together a total team effort against Starmont, as the offense shot the team to a 19-point lead at halftime and the defense held the Stars to nine points or fewer in three out of four periods. Starmont mounted a mini comeback in the third period, but the defense, which finished with seven blocks and 13 steals, and an offense led by Delaney Scherf with 14 points, sealed the victory.
“We did a good job in the first half of distributing the basketball to open teammates. The third quarter was a real struggle, as we didn’t handle Starmont’s pressure defense well, turned the ball over in the back court and Starmont capitalized on those mistakes. We regrouped in the fourth quarter and played more under control,” said head coach Mark Wiley.
That pressure led to 24 Warrior turnovers, which is often difficult to overcome, but the Stars were unable to capitalize on those mistakes. Along with the offensive production of Delaney Scherf and her teammates, Central did enough to secure the win.
Other offensive production came from Abby Cummer, who had eight points in the game, while Haley Frieden, Hannah Asche and Carly Kluesner each had seven points.
The team shot a respectable 39.4 percent from the field and 35.7 percent on three pointers. The Warriors struggled at the free throw line, however, shooting just 50 percent, or 10-20.
The Warriors also won the rebounding battle, 39-32, limiting the second chance opportunities for Starmont. Frieden led the team with seven rebounds, Cummer grabbed six and Asche had five.
The team settled for just nine assists, with Delaney Scherf producing four of them. Frieden added three and Lexi Loan had two.
On defense, it was all about the steals. Delaney Scherf led the way with four, followed by Asche with three. Loan and Ashlyn Scherf had two steals each, and Cummer and Frieden each had one.
The following game against MFL MarMac was a lopsided affair. The Warriors could not overcome poor shooting, turnovers and the defensive pressure of the Bulldogs, which held the Warriors to fewer than 10 points in all four periods, including a scoreless fourth period. Central’s defense tried but could not stop the Bulldog offense that finished with three players scoring in double digits and shot 44 percent from the field.
Delaney Scherf led the Warriors again in the scoring column, with 14 points, while the remaining four starters finished a combined 0-14 from the field. As a whole, the team shot just 21.6 percent from the field and only made two of 14 three pointers.
Ashlyn Scherf had a good game for the Warriors off the bench with seven points, while Asche and Grace Kuehl each had three points.
The Warriors finished with a season-low two assists, with the Scherf sisters getting both. The offense was once again plagued by turnovers, committing 17, which led to 17 points for the Bulldogs.
One bright spot was the Warriors’ free throw shooting, where they made 11-14.
“MFL-Mar-Mac played man to man defense. We struggled to get to the paint offensively,” Wiley said.
The Warriors competed well in rebounding, as the totals were even between the two teams at 33 each, but Central did not have any second chance points in the game and the Bulldogs only allowed the Warriors to come away with four offensive rebounds, compared to the Bulldogs’ 11 offensive rebounds which led to 11 points.
Leading the Warriors was Cummer with six rebounds, followed by Frieden who had five. Ashlyn Scherf, Delaney Scherf and Asche each had four.
The defense finished the game with four blocks and four steals, and forced eight turnovers. Delaney Scherf led the team with three steals, while Frieden had the other steal in the game.
“Our defense was not disruptive to their offense. We didn’t get into passing lanes in our zone defense,” Wiley said.
The Warriors now stand at 9-7 in the Upper Iowa Conference and 10-10 overall. Their final regular season game was on Feb. 8, against Turkey Valley. The Warriors looked to finish with a win before hosting West Central on Thursday, Feb. 11, for the first round of the regional tournament.
