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Vikes keep their eye on the prize with winsThe North Branch girls basketball team extended its win streak to eight games with wins Feb. 10 over Milaca and Feb. 12 over Pine City. North Branch had a good first quarter against Milaca, taking the 13-9 edge before seeing players in foul trouble in the second quarter. Despite the inconsitencies on offense, the defense prevailed and gave the Vikes a 19-14 lead at the half. ìThe one constant we have is good defense,î Head Coach Dan Schindler said. The Vikes regained control in the third, outscoring the Wolves 15-6, leading to a 48-28 win. Junior Megan Stegmeir led the team in her best game of the year, notching 11 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. ìMegan has been one of the big reasons why weíve been playing so well,î Schindler said. Freshman Tiffany Good added 10 points and junior Jenny Anderson had 8. Pine City came to town on a five-game win streak but was handed a 58-48 loss by North Branch. The Dragons came out quickly and led 11-9 after one before North Branch scored 20 in the second for a 29-23 halftime lead. Outstanding bench play from Stegmier, Good and senior Kara Lundeen helped the Vikes stay steady throughout the second half as the team added 29 more points for the 58-48 win. Freshman Gabrielle Olson hit 5 of 6 free throws in the final quarter. Lundeen had her best performance of the year with 8 points and 10 rebounds. The balanced scoring was led by Anderson with 12 and senior Vashaity Center and Olson with 10 each. The Vikes improve to 12-3 in the conference, 15-7 overall and continue to hold second place in the Rum River Conference. This week, the team was scheduled to take on Fridley Tuesday and faces its toughest challenge of the second half Fri., Feb. 20, taking on St. Michael-Albertville. STMA is 13-0 and in first place in the RRC. The Knights are also ranked No. 2 in the state and Schindler knows it will be the teamís toughest challenge. ìIt will be a big test for us and should be alot of fun,î he said. ìWe are looking forward to the challenge.î The team returns home Feb. 24 to take on Zimmerman. ©ECM Post Review |