County rivals collide

The gym at Superior High School was nearly filled to capacity on Thursday night as the St. Regis Tigers made the short trip on Interstate 90 for two games of intense conference basketball.

Starting the night off it was the Lady Bobcats facing off against the Lady Tigers. Both teams are hungry this year and held nothing back on the court for the duration of the game.

In the first quarter the two teams traded their opening blows and it was all defense. St. Regis and Superior both played aggressive on defense, generating turnover and fast-break opportunities.

At the end of the first the score was low and close but the Lady Bobcats turned up the defensive pressure in the second and began generating a rhythm on offense to gain momentum.

Led by senior Nicole Stroot, Superior was able to grab a six-point lead at half over St. Regis with a score of 28-22.

The second half started with the Lady Bobcats looking to build on the lead they established in the second quarter. However the Lady Tigers were not done fighting and continuously challenged the lead.

During one stretch St. Regis found themselves down by as many as 11-points but under the leadership of Gabby Moeller and Arianna Jones they were able to chip away at the lead and bring the game within reach late in the third quarter.

However as the seconds ticked down in the third, Superior senior Kinzie Cooper unleashed a buzzer beating three-pointer to give the Lady Bobcats a ten-point edge.

Riding the momentum of Cooper’s buzzer beater, Superior continued to build their lead in the fourth led by a crippling team defense and clutch shooting.

Jones and Moeller kept things interesting, but the Bobcats always had an answer and hung on to win 62-46.

Stroot led the way for Superior with 23-points. Myranda Kuhl followed with 10-points and three players (Cooper, Marissa Koke and Danielle Ewoniuk) with seven.

Moeller led the Lady Tigers with 15 and Jones had ten.

When the boys faced off it was clear from the start the young Tigers were outmatched. Although they fought for the entire four quarters, St. Regis could not handle the man-to-man defense of Superior.

Superior Head Coach Chris Toivonen called the Bobcat defense “particularly strong,” noting his squad forced 20 turnovers on the night.

“Zach Benda and Tucker Smith combined for 12-steals and Bill Smith did his usual great job helping out on defense,” Coach Toivonen said.

Superior’s two big men were also instrumental in the post and Coach Toivonen said both Jarod Tippens and Clint Voll had “outstanding” performances.

“Thursday also marked the return of Adam Kay after missing about a month with a knee injury,” Coach Toivonen said. “It is great to have him back.”

The Bobcats won 64-17.