Bethany Doolittle’s Comfort Care /Pelling and Brendan Unkrich’s McCurry’s/BlendCard battled it out in Game Time League action on Wednesday —each searching for its first victory of the summer.
“We had to play without Courtney Strait and Kali Peschel tonight,” Unkrich said. “[Both] are great players, remarkable scorers, and that put a little bit of pressure on the rest of our team.”
In the end, his players managed to emerge victorious, 83-53, due in part to Hawkeye Hannah Stewart’s double-double.
“We played a better game than we did last week,” Stewart said, “We were able to take our time on offense when we needed to and put on the gas when we had the opportunity.”
Doolittle’s squad struggled to score during the third and most of the fourth quarter — leading to its defeat. But the game was initially close, just 35-28 at the half.
Stewart’s 26 points and 21from Regina’s Mary Crompton helped create the separation and lead Unkrich to the 30-point victory.
In other Game Time action, Kay DiLeo’s Beat the Bookstore/Westport defeated Joe Johnston’s Vinton Merchants/Culver’s, 66-53.
Tania Davis and Megan Gustafson capitalized on Vinton’s fatigued defense late in the game, with Davis scoring 23 and Gustafson grabbing 11 rebounds.
Carly Mohns led the way for Johnston’s squad with 24 points, and Chase Coley went 0-for-12 from the field, and scored on just 2 free throws.
In the end, the colossal presence of Gustafson down low sealed the victory for DiLeo’s team, giving it an illustrious 3-0 start to the summer.
Iowa guard Whitney Jennings led Randy Larson’s Marion Iron to another decisive victory on Wednesday, this time over Brian Joens’ Cullen Painting/Joensy’s, 145-75.
Jennings, a 5-5 sophomore, has turned out to be the star of summer play. Her ability to penetrate the paint with lightning speed and hit precision shots has created havoc for opposing defenders.
Larson’s squad excelled in its fast-paced, counterattack offense, and it had four players score more than 20 points. The team shot better than 50 percent on field goals.
Adding to the barrage, Emily Neff poured in 19.
The blowout might be due in part to the fact that Hawkeyes Nicole Smith and Alexa Kastanek were pulled for injuries in the second and fourth quarter, respectively.
Smith re-entered the game after the half but had trouble defending the spread offense of Claire Till and her teammates, while Kastanek remained absent for the duration of play.
“It look like she caught her ankle off the end on defense,” Larson said, “It’s just best to rest it at that point and let the trainers take it from there.”
Sitting Kastanek was more than likely a precautionary measure; she was seen walking during the group handshake at the game’s conclusion.