No. 1 Cadet girls topple Waukon, rout No. 3 Clear Lake

CRESCO - After a close first half, the Class 3A No. 1 Crestwood varsity girls’ basketball team pulled away in the second half to earn a 63-41 win over Waukon at home on Jan. 23.

In a battle of two top five teams Thursday, the No. 1 Cadets steamrolled over No. 3 Clear Lake, 65-31, to improve to 17-0 overall.

According to the Class 3A Region 4 tournament pairings, the Cadets (17-0) will play Oelwein (5-11) on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m. at Crestwood in the first round. The winner will play either Waukon (10-5) or North Fayette Valley (5-12) on Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. at Crestwood in the semifinals.

The semifinal winner will advance to the Region 4 Final on Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. at Oelwein to face either Anamosa (14-3), Dyersville Beckman (10-7), Mount Vernon (12-5) or West Delaware (3-11).

Cadets 63, Waukon 41

The Waukon Indians gave No. 1 Crestwood a tough challenge early on before the Cadets went on a run in the second half to down the Indians, 63-41, on Jan. 23.

In the first quarter, the lead changed hands three times as the Cadets took a slim 10-9 lead going into the second quarter. Waukon remained within striking distance in the second quarter as Crestwood gained a 27-21 halftime lead.

In the third quarter, the Cadets opened the period with an 8-0 run to push the lead to 35-21 at the 5:23 mark. Crestwood extended the lead to 43-29 going into the fourth. In the final period, Waukon was unable to get any closer than 14 points in the final period as Crestwood held on for the victory.

While pleased to get the win, Cadet Head Coach Doug Sickles said Crestwood has room for improvement.

“In the first half, we were pretty stagnant on offense,” Sickles said. “We hit only one of 11 three-pointers in the first half, and we were three of six in the second half. We shot the ball too quick in the first half.

“We ran our offense better in the second half. This was a good game for us because it showed us we need to shore some things up in order to play at a high level. I was happy with our defense for the most part, but I was disappointed with our rebounding. Our offense and rebounding overall were not as sharp as they usually are, but that’s why we have practices,” Sickles said.

Shannon Pisney finished with 21 points, including two three-pointers, had nine rebounds, three steals and two assists. Sharon Goodman had 15 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks. Ellie Friesen tallied 10 points, eight assists and two rebounds.

Emily Friesen had nine points, including one three-pointer, seven rebounds and two assists. Brynn Bodermann had six points, including one three-pointer, and four assists. Taylor Shelton had two points. Laken Lienhard had one rebound.

Score by quarters

CW   10   17   16   20 - 63

Wak   9    12    8    12 - 41

 

Cadets 65, C. Lake 31

The No. 1 Crestwood girls’ team sprinted to a 10-2 lead early in the first quarter and never let up as the Cadets sailed to a 65-31 win over No. 3 Clear Lake Thursday at home.

The Cadets built a 24-8 lead after one period, thanks in part to 11 first period points by Shannon Pisney. Both teams traded buckets throughout the second period as Crestwood took a 35-19 halftime lead.

Crestwood opened the third period on a 13-2 run to take a 48-21 advantage before pushing the lead to 55-26 going into the fourth period.

Sickles noted that Crestwood’s unselfish team play was a big key to the win over a solid Clear Lake team.

“It’s nice to get out to a hot start on offense, but it’s our defense that really keeps us going,” Sickles said. “I told our girls this game was about defense and unselfishness, and that’s what our girls showed. I couldn’t be more proud of our girls.

“I don’t talk a lot about personal accolades because this is a team game, but our girls do a great job of sharing the ball. They are not worried about who gets the credit, and that’s what this group of girls is about.This win is just the start for us.

“Our girls also did a better job rebounding than we did against Waukon (on Jan. 23). Against Clear Lake, we played extremely well for all 36 minutes,” the coach said.

Shannon Pisney led Crestwood with 21 points, including one three-pointer, had eight rebounds and five assists. Sharon Goodman had 19 points and six rebounds. Emily Friesen had 14 points, including four three-pointers, five assists and four rebounds.