|
 By Steve Morris
North Branch exploited Columbia
Height's inept ball handling skills into countless fast breaks and easy
baskets as they cruised past the Hylanders 82-55 at home Jan. 11.
With less than four minutes left in the first half, the girl Vikings had a commanding 32-10 lead.
Helping the Viking's cause was first half three's from Kendra Norman and Cory Fairbanks.
The
girls full-court pressure made Columbia Heights look like a fish out of
water, as they attempted, unsuccessfully, to deal with the punishing
defense of Kristen Robatcek and company.
Robatcek ended with 15
points. Megan Scherer had a team-high 17 points. For Schindler, it was
refreshing to see his team sing a different note on offense.
"It
sure was nice to score 82 points," he said. "I was most pleased that we
really did the best job of the year running our offense. We had some
possessions that we had 10 passes and took a good shot. That was a big
improvement from earlier games this year."
Kristen Robatcek drives to the basket during a game against Columbia
Heights Jan. 11 in North Branch. In the Vikings previous game against
Irondale, Robatcek ended with 16 points and 10 steals.
Irondale
Against Irondale, rushed shooting proved to be the girls demise.
In the first half, the girls shot 5-25 from the floor.
"Its not that we are bad shooters, its more that we have to be patient on offense and take good shots," Schindler said.
After the break, the girls came out and were more focused on their shot but the damage had already been done.
The
Vikings managed to make some runs at Irondale in the second half, yet
the Knights hit some timely three pointers, to keep the distance.
Playing well for the girls was Norman, who played more like a junior or senior than a freshman.
"Norman really played a good game and had 16 points and 6 steals in her best varsity game," head coach Dan Schindler said.
Robatcek also had a stellar game. She led the team in both steals (10) and points (26).
"Robatcek had a great offensive game for us," Schindler said.
North Branch 14 29 43
Irondale 23 28 51
Kristen Robatcek 26, 10 steals, Kristen Kaminski 2, Kendra Norman 4, Megan Scherer 2, Ashley Johnson 9
Columbia Heights 10 45 55
North Branch 38 44 82
Cori
Fairbanks 7, Kristen Robatcek 15, Kristen Kaminski 5, Jessica Audette
2, Kendra Norman 16, Miranda Charley 1, Megan Scherer 17, Rikki Beaver
3, Amanda Sylla 6, Ashley Johnson 10
 |
