Mission GB: Busting out the brooms

ST. IGNATIUS - Over the last weekend of the regular season, the

Mission Lady Bulldogs played some of their best basketball of the

season and a 2-0 record over those games reflected that.

ST. IGNATIUS - Over the last weekend of the regular season, the Mission Lady Bulldogs played some of their best basketball of the season and a 2-0 record over those games reflected that.

On Thursday, Feb. 9, Bryanna Steele scored 16 points and Stephanie Lewandowski added 11 as the Lady Bulldogs recorded a huge 48-35 victory over the Ronan Maidens.

"The last couple of weeks, we've played well, including our games against Charlo and Loyola," Mission head coach Les Rice said.

The Lady Bulldogs didn't blow the Maidens out in any of the first three quarters, but a solid defense and efficient offense still managed to spot them a 37-22 lead after those periods as they methodically built a double-digit lead en route to the victory. It was the sixth time in the last nine games that Mission allowed 40 points or less, a trend that has allowed the Lady Bulldogs to win four of those games.

"It sounds funny, but a lot of that was our offense," Rice said. "They didn't put our defense in a position to chase someone down. We're scoring more, turning the ball over less, rebounding well and limiting teams to one shot."

Four other Mission girls scored in the win, including Loren Erickson with nine and Cecelia Koskela with seven.

Two nights later, the defense had one of its best performances of the entire season, holding the Troy Lady Trojans to 27 points in a 30-27 victory. Lewandowski led the charge with 14 points, as the Lady Bulldogs downed Troy for the second time this season. Steele was held scoreless for only the second time all year, but she was still a presence on offense while others stepped up in a variety of ways.

"Bryanna has been playing more consistently," Rice said. "Troy was all over her, which allowed others to step up. Her, Stephanie and Loren have helped us become steady offensively, while Katrina (Stevens) and Cecelia have helped us with defense and rebounding."

The Lady Trojans led 8-5 after the opening stanza, but a 13-7 second quarter for Mission turned the tables for good, as each team scored six points in both the third and fourth quarters.

The Lady Bulldogs downed the Maidens once again on Tuesday, Feb. 14 51-28 to advance to the Class 6B District tournament where they'll face Loyola. Steele led Mission with 20 points against Ronan.

RONAN @ MISSION

Ronan - 8 - 6 - 8 - 13 - 35

Mission - 13 - 10 - 14 - 11 - 48

Lady Bulldogs scoring - Bryanna Steele 16, Stephanie Lewandowski 11, Loren Erickson 9, Cecelia Koskela 7, Katrina Stevens 4, Kaylie Durglo 1.

MISSION @ TROY

Mission - 5 - 13 - 6 - 6 - 30

Troy - 8 - 7 - 6 - 6 - 27

Lady Bulldogs scoring - Stephanie Lewandowski 14, Loren Erickson 6, Cecelia Koskela 5, Katrina Stevens 3, Twyla Hogge 2.