1-2 week for Central girls basketball team
With 10 points and 14 rebounds, sophomore Blair Scherf secured a double-double in Central’s win over Clayton Ridge on Dec. 2. (Photo by Bruce Thein)
Brylee Erickson drives past a Clayton Ridge defender in last week's Warrior win. (Photo by Bruce Thein)
Layla Embretson tosses up a shot versus the Eagles. She scored 15 points in the game. (Photo by Bruce Thein)
Katie Royer chipped in seven points in Central's Dec. 2 victory over Clayton Ridge. (Photo by Bruce Thein)
By Audrey Posten | Times-Register
The Central girls basketball team went 1-2 last week, dropping a pair of games to Maquoketa Valley and Turkey Valley but blowing past Clayton Ridge.
The Dec. 1 game versus Maquoketa Valley was close early, with the Wildcats leading 13-12 after the first quarter and 19-18 at halftime. However, the Warrior offense went quiet in the second half, scoring just three points in each the third and fourth quarters, and Maquoketa Valley pulled away for a 44-24 victory.
Sophomore Blair Scherf was just shy of a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds and also grabbed a steal for the Warriors. Seniors Layla Embretson and Katie Royer contributed five points and six rebounds apiece. Royer led the team with four steals and added a block and an assist, while Embretson picked up two steals and a block.
Central got back in the win column on Dec. 2, minimizing turnovers and shooting better from the field in a 57-28 drubbing of Clayton Ridge. After landing just shy the night before, Scherf secured a double-double in this game with 10 points and 14 rebounds. She also led the Warriors with six assists and supported the defense with four steals and a block.
Embretson put up 15 points, to go with five rebounds and a block, and junior Brylee Erickson netted 11 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals. Royer added seven points, six rebounds and two assists, as well as a team-high five steals. Freshman Zoey Armstrong chipped in six points and five rebounds off the bench.
Turkey Valley—ranked 10th in Class 1A—snapped Central’s momentum with a 62-21 win in Jackson Junction on Dec. 5. The Warriors struggled to gain their offensive footing, scoring only three points while the Trojans blazed ahead with 21. Turkey Valley led 37-11 by halftime and pushed the advantage to 49-12 by the end of the third quarter on 51.1 percent shooting.
The Trojans grabbed 31 rebounds to Central’s 18, limiting second chance scoring opportunities for the Warriors, and also thwarted the Warriors with 14 steals and four blocks.
With eight points, Scherf led Central in scoring for the third straight game. Her stat line also included three rebounds and two steals. Embretson added seven points and six rebounds, while Erickson finished the game
with four points, three assists, a rebound and a steal.
This week, the Warriors were scheduled to play at 12th-ranked Kee on Dec. 9, before it was postponed by weather. The team will host West Central Dec. 12, then take on LeRoy-Ostrander in the Border Battle in Decorah on Dec. 13.
