Lady Pirates get two conference wins
Caption: Polson's Sierra Pete drives the baseline around Columbia Falls' Amanda Millard last Saturday. Pete has contributed a lot to the team off the bench over the past few games, scoring eight points against Ronan last Tuesday.
Ethan Smith - Leader Staff
It was feast and famine Tuesday night in Ronan, as the Lady Pirates spread their scoring around nine different players, while only three Maidens got on the board in the 58-32 loss to Polson.
For Polson, it was the second conference win this week, while Ronan will look to bounce back against Columbia Falls and Libby next weekend — both conference games, but the first time the team will be truly healthy.
On Tuesday, both teams struggled with turnovers, as Polson caused 23 but gave up 21, head coach Randy Kelley said.
"We needed to do a little better job of taking care of the ball, but overall I was pleased. We had nine girls score, and that's what I hope for every night," he said. "We have some unselfish girls who like to share [scoring responsibility]."
Jessica Buckless had eight, along with Sierra Pete, who has had two great games for the Lady Pirates, while Nicole Davey led the team with 11.
Cali Hislop had six, along with Merilee Mowbray and Rochelle Woods, and Sarah Newton and Brianne Kelley had two each.
For the Maidens, they got great scoring from Jordan Strozzi (7), Kaylee Larson (10) and Ishan Wylie, who led all scorers with 15 off the bench, but three just isn't enough, coach Karla Moxley said.
"Offensively, we really struggled. We had girls with open shots who didn't look at the basket, and we had girls not function effectively on offense," she said.
As expected, Polson used their press and man defense, and while Ronan sometimes broke the press, they had a hard time capitalzing on the other end.
"They mainly ran their full-court man (defense), and tried to press some, but we did a good job of breaking that. But we were so ineffective scoring from the half court that we'd just turn around the give the ball back," Moxley said.
On the plus side, the team rebounded better tonight, and will look forward to the return of starter Carli Starkel, who has been out all season with an injury, and who has been cleared to suit up for Friday's game. The Maidens have had a young team for most of the season, with Wylie out all December, and Starkel will add some experience on the court.
For Polson, their eyeing a three-game conference sweep, as they face off against Libby on Saturday after hosting Eureka on Friday, in non-conference action.
"I wish I had some more time to work on some things, but our goal is to sweep for the week," Kelley said.