Come-from-behind win over Central clinches conference title for MFL MarMac
Bulldog senior Lakota Morrissey finished the Feb. 1 game against Central with eight points. MFL MarMac won 52-49, clinching the Upper Iowa Conference title. (Photos by Audrey Posten)
Junior Grace Anderson was a nearly perfect 6-7 from the field and contributed 15 points in MFL MarMac’s win over Central.
Carlie Jones looks for an open Bulldog teammate in last week's game versus the Warriors.
Riley Moreland hit a go-ahead three, and made key free throws down the stretch, in the win over Central.
Miranda Lang works past Central defenders.
Ashley Shaw defends Central's Delaney Scherf.
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
A come-from-behind victory over Central on Feb. 1 clinched the Upper Iowa Conference title for the MFL MarMac girls basketball team. It was the first of three conference wins for the Bulldogs last week, improving them to a perfect 15-0 and 17-4 overall.
Central led MFL MarMac 24-19 at halftime and a hot start out of the break opened up a double digit advantage early in the third quarter. The Bulldogs fought back, however, down just 37-36 by the end of the period.
A three pointer from senior Riley Moreland finally gave MFL MarMac the lead, 49-48, with just over a minute left in the game. The Warriors were forced to foul in the remaining time, giving the Bulldogs three points off free throws. They also scored one foul shot of their own. Central star Delaney Scherf then missed a game tying three at the buzzer, cementing a 52-49 win for the Bulldogs.
Central had hit six shots from downtown before that miss, two more than MFL MarMac’s game total. The Bulldogs out-shot the Warriors overall, though, at 40.9 to 34.1 percent, and also limited Central to only five offensive rebounds.
Moreland’s 18 points led MFL MarMac, and she completed the double-double with 13 rebounds. Her stat line also included three steals and an assist. Junior Grace Anderson, who was a nearly perfect 6-7 from the field, contributed 15 points along with three rebounds. Senior Miranda Lang had nine points and a team-high eight assists, in addition to five rebounds, two steals and a block. Senior Lakota Morrissey finished the night with eight points, two rebounds and an assist.
The Bulldogs had an easier game Feb. 3 at West Central, building on a 19-4 first quarter lead to win 70-36. They shot 47.2 percent from the field, far better than the Blue Devils’ 31.1 percent. MFL MarMac also got to the free throw line 16 more times and held a 34-23 rebounding advantage. The Blue Devils struggled to hold on to the ball as well, turning it over 22 times compared to the Bulldogs’ 11.
Lang led the team in this match-up, with 17 points, four assists, three steals and a block. Moreland’s 11 points and nine rebounds put her just shy of another double-double, and she added four assists, three steals and two blocks. Anderson also finished with 11 points, along with six rebounds and three steals, while junior Ashley Shaw tallied nine points and a rebound.
MFL MarMac got off to another fast start in its Feb. 4 game against Clayton Ridge, up 11-2 after the first quarter and 27-8 by halftime, en route to a 50-31 final.
The Bulldogs were cold from behind the arc, hitting none of their 13 attempts. The team also shot just 29.5 percent from the field. They did benefit from a 14-19 mark on free throws, however, and, defensively, nabbed 11 steals and two blocks.
Anderson was the top scorer with 19 points, and also snagged eight rebounds. Moreland finished the night at 17 points, seven rebounds, four steals, two assists and two blocks. Lang totaled five points, in addition to four assists, three rebounds and two steals. Fellow senior Carlie Jones had four points and three rebounds.
MFL MarMac will wrap up its regular season schedule this week, hosting Wisconsin team River Ridge in Monona on Feb. 8. The Bulldogs will start postseason play on Tuesday, Feb. 15, against Sumner-Fredericksburg. The Class 2A - Region 4 Quarterfinal game will start at 7 p.m. in Monona.
