After advancing to regional semifinal, Bulldogs can’t harness Cyclones
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
The MFL MarMac girls basketball team kicked off its 2022 postseason last week with a 42-33 win over Sumner-Fredericksburg in the Class 2A - Region 4 quarterfinal, but couldn’t get past Denver in the semifinal game a few days later.
The Bulldog defense held Sumner-Fred to just 26.5 percent shooting and its lowest point total of the season in the Feb. 15 quarterfinal match-up. The Cougars scored 17 in the final quarter, but tallied just three, eight and five points, respectively, in the opening three.
MFL MarMac, meanwhile, shot 32.5 percent from the field. After holding a slim 15-11 lead at halftime, the team pushed its advantage to 29-16 in the third quarter and held off the Cougars down the stretch. Free throws were one of the keys for the Bulldogs, who took 14 more attempts than Sumner-Fred, making 13 of 25.
With the Cougars limiting MFL MarMac leading scorer Riley Moreland to just two points, the Bulldogs were also able to utilize other offensive threats. Chief among them was Grace Anderson, who was 5-9 on field goals, for 12 points, and added four rebounds, a steal and a block. Lakota Morrissey chipped in 10 points and a rebound, while Brooklynn Moon had nine points, four rebounds and a steal. Miranda Lang finished the night at seven points, nine assists, five rebounds and two steals. Moreland was the Bulldogs’ top rebounder, with 10.
The Bulldogs then faced a tough opponent in Denver for the Feb. 18 semifinal. The Cyclones, ranked second in Class 2A, had lost just twice this season—both to top-ranked Dike-New Hartford.
Denver shot at a 48.6 percent clip in the game, and went 21-25 from the foul line, beating MFL MarMac 59-44.
The Bulldogs out-rebounded Denver but were hurt by the free throw disparity, hitting just four of eight attempts. They also committed 14 turnovers to the Cyclones’ six.
Moreland led the MFL MarMac effort with 20 points, seven rebounds, two steals and an assist. Moon also hit double digits, with three shots from behind the arc accounting for nine of her 11 points. She snagged a steal and a rebound as well. Lang’s stat line included six points, three rebounds, two assists and a steal, while Anderson picked up five points, an assist and a team-high eight rebounds.
The Bulldogs, who were Upper Iowa Conference champions, finished the regular season with a 19-5 record.