Lady Bobcats claw their way to victory

SUPERIOR – The Lady Bobcats saw a victory and defeat in games against the Hot Springs Lady Savages and Thompson Falls Lady Hawks, last Friday and Saturday.

When the Superior girls went to Hot Springs Friday, January 3, the team took a 52-31 victory. Head Coach Jeff Schultz said the team played a very aggressive game against the Lady Savage Heat. While some mistakes were made as the girls tired out, the team always came back with more energy.

“That’s what this team brings, is a lot of energy,” said Schultz.

The coach felt Sophomore Danielle Ewoniuk had a good game as she led the team’s victory with 18 points. Junior Jordan Mueller was also noted by Schultz and ranked a close second with 16 points.

“[Ewoniuk] could probably net three or four shots the entire night,” said Schultz. “She was dead on and on fire – so the more we could get her the ball, the more she could shoot.”

Sophomore Marissa Koke scored 12 points and the remainder of the game’s points were gained by juniors Sierra Bruning and Nadeia Ewoniuk.

After the win in Hot Springs, the Lady Bobcats faced a close 38-44 loss against the Lady Hawks.

Despite the loss against Thompson Falls, Schultz felt the girls played very well. He said freshman Celein Parkin was a valuable asset as she brought the Lady Bobcats seven points. The coach felt Parkin could add a whole new dimension to the game if she were trained to be a strong scorer.

Mueller continued to score well and brought a team best of 14 points. The rest of the scores were evenly distributed among Danielle, Koke, freshman Emma Duboise, senior Anesa Ruiz and junior Hannah Hollenback.

Schultz said the loss came largely because of how many lay ups the team missed. He said it was important not to miss those shots against an athletic team like Thompson Falls where the opposition could quickly gain possession of the ball.

However, Schultz was pleased with how energetically the girls played. He said the Lady Bobcats came out pumped up and it was nice how many of the girls played a stronger game than they had previously. The coach recalled how Ruiz got energized in her plays when she was on the court.

“It was nice to see her come out and be aggressive, and that’s something we haven’t seen her do yet,” said Schultz.

In the days before the next game, Schultz worked with the girls to improve on defense to keep the opposition’s scores down.

The Superior girls’ next games will both be at home against Charlo on Thursday, January 9 at 7 p.m., and Two Eagle River on Saturday, January 11 at 6 p.m.

Schultz felt the Charlo game would be a big one as it is against an opponent who is nearly undefeated. He said the Lady Vikings have always been a tough team, which has made for fun games when they play Superior.

Schultz said the Lady Eagles were “much improved” from last year and Friday’s game promised to be another interesting one. For both games, he said it would be important for Superior to bring their best.

“If we don’t, it’ll be unfortunate because we won’t get the outcome we’re looking for,” said Schultz.