Stanley-Boyd too much for Hornets on the road
By Nathaniel Underwood
The Colby girls basketball team faced off against Stanley- Boyd in a road non-conference game last Friday. While the Hornets matched their opponents in the second half, they could not make up for ground lost in the opening period and they fell to the Orioles 62-47.
Stanley-Boyd’s superior shooting and rebounding carried them through against the visiting Hornets. The home team made 41 percent of their field goals while also sinking eight three-point shots while Colby was held to a field goal percentage of 23.7 percent and three makes from beyond the arc. The Orioles also outrebounded them 50 to 39.
The Hornets did take advantage of their trips to the free throw line, making 16 of their 26 attempts while Stanley-Boyd made just four free throws all evening, but it wasn’t enough to make up the deficit in shooting elsewhere on the court.
A three-pointer from Brynn Polivka put Colby on the board first, but that was the only time the Hornets led all evening. Five straight points for the Orioles put them ahead and while Harrison Schmitt managed to tie things back up with a layup, a second-chance basket for Stanley-Boyd on their next possession gave them a lead they never relinquished.
Points were hard to come by for Colby in the first half and the Orioles were able to use that to build a comfortable lead.
Following Schmitt’s basket, Stanley-Boyd outscored the Hornets 25-8 over the next 11 minutes. Schmitt had six of Colby’s eight points over that stretch, but the visitors struggled to find much consistency on the offensive side of the ball. Free throws from Polivka, Angelique Hernandez and Lucia Perez in the final two minutes of the period made things somewhat closer, but the Hornets still found themselves down 32-17 at halftime.
A rally part way through the second period gave the Hornets a much needed boost. Trailing 39-21, a steal from Hernandez turned into a quick two points as she found Alexis Vanderhoof for a fast break layup. The basket kickstarted an 11-2 run for Colby where they made 50 percent of their field goal attempts and sank three of their four free throws.
Vanderhoof led the way with six points and a free throw from Polivka cut Stanley-Boyd’s lead back down to single digits for the first time since midway through the first half.
The Orioles finally answered with a free throw and a three-pointer, and while Polivka hit her own three in response, the tide began to shift back in favor of the home team. They outscored the Hornets 11-4 over the next five minutes and, with a 54-39 advantage with four minutes left, Stanley-Boyd was able to weather the final stretch with a comfortable lead.
Three players scored double-digit points for the Hornets. Vanderhoof led the way putting up a season-high 15 points on 5-of-13 shooting and making four free throws. She also had seven deflections and four steals on defense. Polvika had a double-double after picking up 12 points and 10 rebounds and Schmitt finished with 10 points and five deflections.
Hernandez added another seven points and led the team in steals with five. Lilly Brzezinski had a team-high four blocks to go along with six rebounds and two points and Perez finished with one point.
The Hornets are now 2-8 this season and their schedule does not get any easier. They will host the current leader of the Cloverbelt-East conference, Neillsville, on Thursday, January 9. The Warriors are undefeated in conference play so far, holding a 5-0 record, and are 9-1 overall. They were ranked number 5 in Wissports.net’s Division 4 coaches poll, but a loss to Fall Creek in their most recent game could change that. Senior Sydney Subke is the Warriors primary option on offense, averaging 17.9 points per game, though sophomore Braelyn Anding is also averaging double-digit points per game with 10.4.
The game between the two Cloverbelt-East foes is to start at 7:15 p.m.
TOUGH DEFENSE - Alexis Vanderhoof, picture above earlier in the season against Marathon, had one of her best performances of the season last Friday against Stanley-Boyd. The senior had seven deflections and four steals on defense while also putting up a team high 15 points.
STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD
