Central offense comes alive in victories over NFV and West Central
Brylee Erickson scored 12 points in Central’s 60-23 win at West Central last week. (Photos by Willis Patenaude)
Blair Scherf defends a Blue Devil player during the Warrior win.
Katie Royer went seven for 11 from the field for 17 points versus the Blue Devils.
Maria Villarejo lays in a bucket against West Central.
Oakley Armstrong pressures a Blue Devil player in last week's victory.
By Willis Patenaude | Times-Register
The Central girls basketball team returned to the court last week with only one place to go after a narrow defeat to Clayton Ridge that saw them shoot just 15.9 percent from the field and commit 23 turnovers.
The way up started at North Fayette Valley, and much like the game against Clayton Ridge, the Warriors got out to an early lead, pulling ahead 11-4 after the first period. But unlike that game, they “did not sit on an early lead,” said coach Wiley, and continued to apply both defensive and offensive pressure, effectively converting in transition.
Central out-ran NFV from rim to rim and outshot them as well, heading into halftime up 24-10 “due to high quality shots and execution” of the offense, Wiley said.
NFV mounted a second half comeback, outscoring the Warriors 10-4 in the third period and trimming the lead to one point early in the fourth, but Brylee Erickson put a stop to the comeback, scoring at the rim to push the lead back to three. Two possessions later, Erickson had another solid drive to the hoop, extending the lead to four points. A few made free throws down the stretch and the Warriors walked out of the NFV gym with a 42-33 win.
A highlight of the turnaround was Central shooting 41 percent from the field, a vast improvement over the first game of the season. The Warriors also committed fewer turnovers and shot higher percentages from the free throw line and on three-pointers. Leading the team in scoring was Erickson, who had 10 points and a team high seven rebounds.
Maria Villarejo led the offense with five assists, while adding six rebounds and two steals to go with seven points. Oakley Armstrong went three for four from the field, scoring seven points, and Layla Embretson put in a solid effort off the bench, connecting on four of seven shots for eight points, to go with two assists and one steal.
The Warriors forced 19 turnovers, including 13 steals, led by Katie Royer with five and Erickson with three. The defense held the TigerHawks to 28.9 percent shooting from the floor and just 7.7 percent from behind the arc.
Blair Scherf was a presence in the post, grabbing six defensive rebounds with two steals, while providing three points on offense as well.
The Warriors continued to improve against the West Central Blue Devils on Dec. 6, starting the game with defensive pressure and hitting shots from all over the floor, including a three-pointer from Erickson on a pass from Villarejo that opened the floodgates. The tandem did it again a few plays later and, after a steal by Villarejo, a fast break by the Warriors ended in a layup by Scherf to extend the lead to 10-3 in the first period. But Erickson and Villarejo weren’t finished, as Villarejo drained a three on a pass from Erickson and the pair led another fast break that ended in a score by Royer. The Warriors were up 15-3 to end the first period.
The second quarter was a continuation of the first, with Erickson and Royer knocking down three-pointers. The pair hit a combined seven of 10, and midway through the second, the Warriors led 23-8. A pair of Mya Gregerson free throws extended the lead to 28-10 and back-to-back steals by Villarejo, who finished the game with nine, brought the lead to 30-10 at halftime.
Central’s offense started the third period with a pass from Armstrong to Erickson for a layup, and a few plays later, after back-to-back threes by Erickson and Royer, the Warriors led 40-10. Layups by Scherf and Embretson brought the score to 49-20 to end the period.
In the fourth, the Warrior defense held the Blue Devils to just three points, while the offense—led by shots from Embretson and Villarejo and a three from the clouds by Gregerson—kept command of the game. Central won 60-23.
The Warrior offense shot 46.2 percent from the field and 40.9 percent on three-point shots. Royer, the leading scorer, went seven for 11 from the field for 17 points, while Erickson and Scherf each scored 12 points and combined for four assists and five steals. Villarejo put up team highs in assists with eight and steals with nine, and finished with seven points. Armstrong added six steals to the Warrior total of 26.
From the bench, the Warriors saw contributions from Gregerson, who finished with four points, two steals and one rebound, and Embretson, who scored eight points with four rebounds. Ella Frieden made an impact with three rebounds and one steal.
The Warriors were back home on Dec. 9, versus Starmont, then were on the road Dec. 10 against Turkey Valley. The Warriors will play Postville on Dec. 13.
