Chris Caporale, sports@wolfrivermedia.com
Leader Photo by Chris Caporale Menominee Indian High School senior center Ania Smith (52) moves over to help teammate Faith Munson defend Marion’s Camille Radies. Smith finished with 20 points in the Eagles’ win Tuesday.
Leader Photo by Chris Caporale Menominee Indian High School sophomore Tennille Lyons guards Marion’s Paige Polzin in the second half of Menominee Indian’s 67-40 victory Tuesday.
The game could not have started any better for the Menominee Indian High School girls basketball team.
The Eagles made their first five baskets, led by senior center Ania Smith’s five points, to jump out to a 14-2 advantage over Marion in the first 4 minutes and 30 seconds of the game.
The host Eagles maintained their pressure defense, forcing more turnovers and easy baskets on the night, which led to an easy 67-40 victory over the Mustangs.
“We had a lot of pressure flying out of our zones, trapping the ball and the girls were really active with their hands, having their hands up,” Menominee Indian head coach Chris Rice said. “In the first half, we gave up a few easy passes into the post that I didn’t like, but we did, for the majority, we worked pretty hard.”
After the Eagles’ quick start, Marion head coach Brad Fischer took a timeout to calm his players to remind them of their roles, specifically in the press break.
From there, the Mustangs flew the ball upcourt, earning some easy layups and open shots to tighten the game to eight points at 22-14 late in the first half.
“After that timeout, we got them back on task,” Fischer said. “It was a lot easier for us to get that ball up the court.”
The Eagles then went back to Smith, who finished with 20 points, for four points and an assist to close out the half on a 10-3 run for a 35-17 lead.
Menominee Indian (5-0, 3-0 Central Wisconsin Conference-10) stayed strong, opening the second half on another 8-3 run to take a 23-point advantage over the Mustangs (1-3, 1-2 CWC-10).
For the final 13 minutes of the game, Marion played even with the Eagles.
“They were shooting really well from the outside. Again, we had issues shooting close-range shots,” Fischer said. “If we continue to work on that, we will fix the problem.”
Rice liked a lot of what he saw from his team over the course of the night, but pointed to his post players as the catalyst for the team. Smith and Kelsey Corn combined for 37 points.
Senior guard Taylor Mahkimetas finished with 12 points, getting many easy baskets on the fast break after forcing turnovers or finding her way behind the Mustangs in transition.
“I think both Kelsey Corn and Ania Smith played great games inside for us,” Rice said. “Our ball handlers were great with their pressure. Overall, it was just a great team effort from us and a great team win.”
Marion (40)
P. Polzin 4 1-2 9; Gillian 1 0-0 2; Sawall 3 0-1 7; Greene-Gretzinger 3 0-0 6; Radies 0 4-6 4; Tishauser 2 0-0 4; Watters 2 4-6 8.
Menominee Indian (67)
Smith 8 3-6 20; Webster 1 0-0 2; Waupoose 1 0-0 3; Mahkimetas 4 3-4 12; Corn 7 3-6 17; Munson 0 2-4 2; T. Lyons 2 0-0 4; Olson 2 0-0 5; Chevalier 1 0-0 2.