Hornet girls get third win of 2022-23 season

The Colby girls basketball team went 1-1 over the last week, falling to Loyal on Tuesday but getting their third victory of the season when they defeated Greenwood.

54-35

The club traveled to Loyal Tuesday night in hopes of extending their winning streak to two, but the Greyhounds had other ideas. The home team kept Colby’s offense in check and cut the Hornets momentum by taking the 54-35 win.

In the first game between the two Cloverbelt- East teams, Colby was held to just 28 points. Loyal similarly shut down the Hornets in their second contest. An early full court press and the Greyhounds ability to cut down on turnovers and get back on defense effectively mitigated Colby’s transition game and forced them to play out of their half court sets. Meanwhile, Colby struggled with turnovers, especially early in the game.

Loyal scored the contest’s first 12 points, doing just enough on offense to pull away from a Hornets’ squad that could not find any rhythm when in possession of the ball. By the time Trisha Vanderhoof gave Colby their first basket, nearly eight minutes had elapsed in the game.

Six consecutive points from Savana Thomsen helped fuel a comeback for the Hornets, who pulled within four points during a Greyhound scoring drought, but the visitors still found themselves behind 27-16 at halftime.

The two teams traded baskets back and forth to open the second period and the Greyhounds still held on to their 11 point lead at the midway point of the half. However, a 15-0 run for Loyal effectively put the game away.

The Hornets made a small push late, but time was not on their side. The Greyhounds walked out of the game victorious, 54-35.

Thomsen led Colby in scoring, putting up 13 points for the visitors. Angelique Hernandez ended the game with seven points, Dakota Hoeper had five and Hayden Willner added four.

58-36

The Hornets got five threes and 22 points from Alexis Vanderhoof and 18 points from Angelique Hernandez to help them defeat Greenwood on the road last Friday evening. Colby topped the Indians 58-36, using a dominant second half to claim their third win of the sea- son.

After giving up the first basket of the game, the Vanderhoof and Hernandez combined to score nine straight points for the Hornets, giving Colby an early lead. Scoring slowed for the Hornets following the run and Greenwood worked their way back into the game, going on a 9-3 run of their own to pull within one of the Hornets. A three from Kylie Orth pushed back the threat and Hernandez’s second three of the game on the following possession gave the visitors some breathing room. The half ended with Colby ahead 25-20, an advantage that the Hornets would only expand in the second period.

When play restarted, Colby went on the offensive, outscoring Greenwood 11-3 over the opening six minutes of the half, once again turning to Hernandez and Vanderhoof. The pair combined for all 11 points, hitting three shots from beyond the arc and giving Colby a 36-23 advantage.

With both teams employing full court presses, neither team looked quite comfortable on offense over the middle portions of the period, but the Hornets seemed to come out the better for it. They maintained their double digit lead before going on a 14-3 run to close out the game, bringing Greenwood’s offense to a halt over the final six minutes and completing the season sweep over their Cloverbelt- East foes.

Along with Vanderhoof’s 22 points and Hernandez’s 18, Colby got 12 points from Kylie Orth, three from Dakota Hoeper, two from Savana Thomsen and one from Harrison Schmitt.

Colby’s next game will be in Owen-Withee next Monday, Feb. 6 at 7:15 p.m.