Charger girls issue statement

NEW ULM -- Imagine the surprise for the folks who showed up at Minnesota Valley Lutheran High School Tuesday night expecting to see a girls basketball game and got a track meet instead.

Or maybe it was more of a tennis match the way the teams zipped up and down the court for a full 32 minutes. In any case, the MVL Chargers started their Tomahawk Conference schedule with a bang, trouncing the Wabasso Rabbits 89-59.

The Chargers dominated from the opening tip, reeling off 54 points in the first half alone, with many of the points coming from smothering defense that caused Rabbits turnovers and great positioning to grab offensive boards.

"I thought defensively we were in good position," Chargers coach Dave Biedenbender said. "We got a lot of rebounds on our offensive end and didn't allow them many on their end. I can't be any happier with their effort. Our girls handled the ball well and passed well. It's probably the best ballhandling club I've ever had."

On the other end of the spectrum was Rabbits' coach Alyssa Downing, who seemed pretty sure why her squad dropped to 2-1.

"Attitude, effort and competing are major areas," Downing said. "If we don't have it, it makes us an average team. The first half, we didn't have any of it. You can't just show up and think we're going to win. Give MVL credit, though. They set the tone early."

That was most certainly true as the Chargers ran off leads of 8-0, 15-4 and 25-6 before ending the first quarter with a 29-13 lead. MVL showed great ballhandling and crisp passing in breaking the Rabbits' full-court press and setting the pace for the rest of the contest. Karissa Kramer helped set that Chargers pace with two steals, three layups, a three-pointer and 11 points on her own.

The Rabbits tried to show some life at the start of the second quarter, with Andrea Fennern hitting a trey and Wabasso running off six straight points when it was 35-17. Then the Chargers went on a 16-5 tear that made it 51-28, and eventually 54-31 at the half, with Kramer hitting a three as the halftime buzzer went off.

Wabasso came out with some fire again in the third quarter, getting some help with suddenly sloppy ballhandling by MVL that gave the Rabbits six straight points off Chargers turnovers and making it 54-37.

The Rabbits were within 16 later on in the quarter, 59-43. But between four points by Kramer off a steal and turnover plus a three and free throw by Kristin Patterson, the quarter ended with the Chargers commanding a 67-43 margin.

There was no Rabbits run in the final quarter as the Chargers went on a 16-6 offensive spree to start the quarter and keeping the 30-point lead for the rest of the game.

Kramer led all scorers with 34, followed by Laura Hunter with 14 and Eva Voss with 9. Biedenbender had special praise for Hunter, who came off the bench when Voss was hit with three early fouls.

"I thought Laura had great play inside, and did a great job rebounding and positioning," he said.

The Rabbits were led by Fennern with 23 and Katie Schumacher with 21. In B-squad action, MVL won 43-18.

MVL travels to Springfield Friday at 7:30 p.m., while Wabasso hosts New Ulm Cathedral, also on Friday at 7:30 p.m.

MVL 29 25 13 21 -- 89

WABASSO 13 18 12 16 -- 59

Cathedral 43,

McLeod West 28

STEWART -- Cathedral sent McLeod West packing in girls Tomahawk conference basketball Tuesday, defeating the Falcons 43-28.

Cathedral turned in solid performances from several players. Toni Hall led the Greyhounds with 11 points, Angela Long added eight points, and Sally Schreiber grabbed 11 rebounds.

Erin Maurer led McLeod West with 12 points, seven rebounds and three steals, while Meghan Maurer chipped in with seven points and another three steals.

McLeod West falls to 1-1 on the year, and will play at Buffalo Lake-Hector at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Cathedral (4-0) will play at Wabasso at on Friday.

Hutchinson 47, New Ulm 40

HUTCHINSON -- The New Ulm girls basketball team kept the game close, but were unable to overcome Hutchinson, losing 47-40.

The Eagles (0-2) were led by Coressa Leighty, who scored 16 points, while Martha Beatty added eight points and five assists. Melissa Kuebler also turned in a solid game with eight points, while Meghan Oberle pulled in 11 rebounds.

Meghan Rettke paced Hutchinson with a game high 22 points.

New Ulm will host St. James at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Sleepy Eye 61, BLH 44

SLEEPY EYE -- Sleepy Eye started out hot, outscoring Buffalo Lake-Hector 33-12 by halftime, and went on to win 61-44 Tuesday.

"We moved the ball well to get the open shots and start the game," Indian coach Shane Heiderscheidt said.

Allie Renberg led the Indians with 24 points and nine rebounds. Charlotte McMullen 13 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Sam Widmer put up 12 points, had five rebounds and five assists, and Emily Hillesheim pulled down nine rebounds and had three assists.

The Indians outrebounded BLH 42-25.

For the Mustangs, Leah Ashburn had 19 points and seven rebounds, and Alyssa Kubesh had eight, six rebounds, two steals and three blocks. Alison Benson had eight boards and four steals.

The Indians (3-1) play at Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop Friday. BLH hosts McLeod West Thursday.

SESM 65, GFW 44

SLEEPY EYE -- Sleepy Eye St. Mary's jumped out to an early seven point lead and never looked back, defeating GFW 65-64 Tuesday.

Molly Mathiowetz paced the Knights (2-1, 1-0) with 19 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Lisa Schwartz and Maria Gangelhoff turned in 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The Thunderbirds, still searching for their first win, were led by Beckie Jackson, who scored 18 points.

St. Mary's hosts Cedar Mountain on Thursday, while GFW travels to Glencoe-Silver Lake.

Comfrey 43, WWG 35

WESTBROOK -- Comfrey improved to 2-0 on the year, as the Comets defeated Westbrook-Walnut Grove 43-35.

Several players turned in solid performances for Comfrey, with Emily Mathiowetz and Angela Hesse each scoring 11 points, while Nicole Geving added eight.

WWG (0-1) was led by Abby Knott, who scored 12 points, and Nicole Geving, who scored nine. Jen Olsem chipped in with six points.

Comfrey next plays at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, December 7, when they face Sioux Valley/Round Lake-Brewster.