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Bears pull away at end, 47-39
by Norv and Mary Coblentz · Sports · January 19, 2011
The West Branch girls’ basketball team handed Durant-Bennett a 47-39 loss at West Branch Jan. 11.
“A win’s a win,” West Branch head coach Mike Johnston said. “Durant played really well. We didn’t keep enough ball pressure on their good shooter, and she kept them in the game.”
Heather Poula scored for the Bears with a jumper on the first possession of the game. Jen Pohlman got a steal, but the Bears turned the ball over to the Wildcats. After a double dribble called on Durant and another West Branch turnover, the Wildcats evened the score at 2. The Bears turned the ball over again, and Durant took a 4-2 lead with just under 6 minutes left in the quarter.
A jump ball was called with the possession going to Durant. The Bears’ tough defense caused a five-second call on the inbounds attempt for the Wildcats. The Bears traveled, but Pohlman got another steal. Another jump ball was called with possession going to the Bears. Jordan Arp connected on a jumper to tie the score with 4:35 on the clock, and the Bears began a run on the Wildcats.
Poula got a steal and went in for a layup. She was fouled on the shot and hit the second of two free throws. She immediately got another steal, this time getting the layup for a 7-4 Bears lead. D-B took a time out.
When the game resumed, Pohlman got a block, and the Wildcats turned the ball over. Arp was fouled on a shot and hit both free throws for a 9-4 Bears lead with 3:30 left in the first quarter. Each team turned the ball over, then a loose ball ended up in Poula’s hands. She passed the ball to Kelley Trimble who hit a three-point shot for a 12-4 lead with 2:30 to go.
The Wildcats answered with a two-point jumper. The Bears missed a shot with the rebound going to Durant, but the Wildcats turned it over again. Arp was fouled again on a shot and hit the first of two free throws for a 13-6 score.
Durant hit a trey on its next possession, pulling to within four points, 13-9, but Pohlman hit a jumper for the Bears for a 15-9 score after one quarter.
The Bears were held to only four points in the second quarter. The first score of the quarter, though, went to West Branch on a jumper by Arp. Durant’s Sidney Lilienthal hit her second trey of the game for a 17-12 score. The Bears turned the ball over and missed two from the charity stripe, then Durant hit a jumper with 4:10 to go, narrowing the Bears’ lead to three.
After another West Branch turnover, Durant’s S. Lilienthal hit yet another three-point shot to tie the game at 17. Arp scored a basket for the Bears with just over two minutes left in the half, then Durant hit another shot to tie the game again, this time at 19.
In the final 1:30 of the half, Durant turned the ball over once, and West Branch turned it over twice. With 4.3 seconds left, Durant hit two free throws to take a 21-19 lead into the locker room.
“(Too many) unforced turnovers in the first half,” said Coach Johnston. “We probably had five possessions where we threw the ball away, unforced.”
Durant coach Tony Neuman was pleased with how his team competed against a solid West Branch team.
“(Sidney Lilienthal) probably had her best shooting night of the year,” Neuman said. “We’re not a very deep team, and the girls worked their tails off for 32 minutes.”
The Wildcats started the second-half scoring with two points, taking a four-point lead. Then Trimble hit a basket in the paint, and Poula scored to tie the game at 23 less than a minute into the quarter.
Trimble grabbed a defensive rebound, then Poula hit a trey to take the lead, 26-23. Natalie Slach was fouled on a shot and hit one of two free throws for a four-point Bears lead. S. Lilienthal completed a traditional three-point play for the Wildcats to close the gap to one.
Pohlman hit a shot, then the Wildcats were called for a charge. Trimble connected for two more points, and the Bears’ lead was 31-26. At the 3:06 mark, Durant hit the second of two free throws for a 31-27 West Branch lead, then Arp got an offensive rebound and putback basket. With 1:26 left in the quarter, Durant scored a basket. The Bears missed two free throws. With under 30 seconds on the clock, Poula got a steal on an inbounds pass and Sexton hit an outside shot for two. The Bears had a 35-31 lead going into the last quarter.
“They had a run early in the second half, and it basically put the game out of reach,” Coach Neuman said.
In the fourth quarter, the Bears maintained the lead and built on it.
Poula hit a three-pointer with 7:30 left in the game to make it 38-31, West Branch. Neither team scored for almost four minutes when S. Lilienthal hit another trey for the Wildcats with 3:35 left in the game.
Arp got a steal and was fouled on a layup shot. She missed the shot, but made one of two free throws for a 38-34 score. Another long shot, this one for two points, from S. Lilienthal kept the Wildcats close at 39-36 with two minutes left.
With 1:48 to go, Slach hit two big free throws to stretch the Bears’ lead to five. Poula got a block, then Trimble hit one of two free throws with 1:09 left to play. The score was 42-36.
With under a minute to play, Trimble hit three of four free throws, Slach hit one of three, and Poula and Sexton each hit one of two. Durant hit one more trey, but it wasn’t enough, and the Bears won 47-39.
“We had three girls in double digits,” Coach Johnston said. “That’s what we want every game. I don’t care who they are. We just need three kids in double digits.”
The three with double digits were Poula with 14, Arp with 12, and Trimble with 10.
With wins at Mid-Prairie Jan 14 and Meskwaki Settlement School Jan. 15, the Bears’ record improves to 8-5, 6-2 in the Cedar Valley Conference.
West Branch stats: Heather Poula 5 2-5 14, 2 3-pointers, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks; McKenna Sexton 1 1-2 3, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal; Natalie Slach 0 4-8 4, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals; Lexi Baylor 1 rebound, 1 assist; Kelley Trimble 3 3-4 10, 1 3-pointer, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals; Kirby Eagle 2 rebounds; Jen Pohlman 2 0-0 4, 2 steals, 1 block; Jordan Arp 4 4-6 12, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block; Jamie Tucker 1 rebound.
Durant-Bennett stats: Sidney Lilienthal 7 1-1 19, 4 3-pointers, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals; Katie Zakrzewski 1 rebound; Nikki Paulsen 2 0-0 5, 1 3-pointer, 3 rebounds, 5 assists; Hannah Lilienthal 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal; Jenny Paulsen 2 3-4 7, 2 rebounds, 4 assists; Gretchen Lilienthal 3 0-2 6, 12 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block; Kristin Porstmann 1 0-0 2, 4 rebounds, 1 steal; Megan Anfinson 1 rebound.
West Branch 60, Mid-Prairie 49
Jan. 14 at Wellman
The Bears defeated a much-improved Mid-Prairie team with Heather Poula leading the scoring with 13 points; she also had five steals. Kelley Trimble had 10 points and seven rebounds, and Jordan Arp had 10 points and four blocks in the win.
West Branch stats: Heather Poula 5 2-2 13, 1 3-pointer, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 steals, 2 blocks; McKenna Sexton 0 2-3 2, 5 rebounds, 1 block; Natalie Slach 2 4-4 8, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 1 steal; Lexi Baylor 0 1-2 1, 1 steal; Kelley Trimble 2 6-8 10, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal; Kirby Eagle 1 3-4 5, 6 rebounds; Jen Pohlman 2 2-4 6, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals; Jordan Arp 4 2-5 10, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 4 blocks; Lexi Luneckas 1 0-2 2, 5 rebounds, 1 assist; Jamie Tucker 0 3-4 3.
Mid-Prairie stats: Meghan Redlinger 2 0-1 4, 1 rebound, 2 assist, 2 steals; Olivia Lugar 1 0-0 2, 2 assists; Erika Murphy 3 2-2 8, 3 rebounds, 1 assist; Mallory McArtor 2 1-2 5, 6 rebounds, 4 steals; Kattie Redlinger 2 2-3 6, 4 rebounds, 1 assist; Taylor Hershberger 3 0-0 7, 1 3-pointer, 1 steal; Felicia Schulty 1 rebound; Mariah Swartzentruber 6 0-1 12, 4 rebounds, 4 assists; Jessica Butters 1 1-4 3, 4 rebounds, 1 assist
West Branch 73,
Meskwaki Settlement 34
Jan. 15 at Meskwaki
Most of the team got some significant playing time as the Bears defeated Meskwaki by 39 points. Kelley Trimble was the leading scorer with 17 points. Thirteen Bears got in the scoring column in the game.
West Branch stats: Heather Poula 2 0-0 6, 2 3-pointers, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals; McKenna Sexton 3 3-4 9, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 blocks; Natalie Slach 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal; Lexi Baylor 0 1-2 1, 1 assist, 2 steals; Kelley Trimble 7 2-4 17, 1 3-pointer, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal; Kirby Eagle 1 0-0 2, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 3 steals; Jen Pohlman 2 0-0 4, 1 block; Anna Bruns 1 0-2 2, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal; Jordan Arp 4 0-0 8, 7 rebounds, 2 assists; Jenny Blaalid 1 3-4 5, 1 rebound, 1 steal; Paige Donohoe 2 0-1 5, 1 3-pointer, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals; Lexi Luneckas 0 1-2 1, 3 rebounds, 2 assists; Ashley Finnegan 3 0-0 7, 1 3-pointer, 1 rebound, 2 steals; Jamie Tucker 3 0-2 6, 5 rebounds.
Meskwaki stats: Unavailable
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