Lady Bobcats stay on winning track
Junior forward John Pruitt (white) goes high to block a shot by Superior post Wyatt Haworth during St. Regis' victory over the Bobcats Friday night in St. Regis. (Photo by Kami Milender)
In Superior, the girls have rhythm and the boys are still trying hard to find it.
That’s a conclusion that can be drawn from the pair of lopsided victories recorded by the Lady Bobcats basketball team, 64-41 over Two Eagle River Saturday night and 58-40 over I-90 rival St. Regis the night before.
The boys, meanwhile, continue to search for the winning formula after dropping two games to the same opponents. Saturday the Bobcats fell to Two Eagle River in another tight loss, 46-40. Friday night they were routed by St. Regis’ boys 71-35.
For the girls, the pair of wins solidified their hold atop the Western 14C conference basketball standings with a 7-0 league record and a 10-1 season mark.
They opened their game with the Lady Eagles in a big way, running up a 26-6 lead by the end of the first quarter. That lead would prove crucial in holding on for what would have been a major upset by the 1-6 Two Eagle River girls on their home court.
The two teams battle to a near draw in the second quarter, with Superior outscoring the scrappy Lady Eagles 12-11 to enter halftime leading 38-17.
Superior regrouped and added six points to their lead by the end of the third quarter behind a balanced scoring attack and their seemingly patented “in-your-face” defense.
Entering the final quarter of play, the Lady Cats were in command 54-27.
Two Eagle mounted a minor rally in the final quarter but it was not enough to catch the league leading Lady Bobcats.
Speedy point guard Isabella Pereira led Superior with 19 points, while teammate Darby Haskins chipped in 15. Molly Patko also scored in double figures for the Cats, racking up 12 points on the night.
Lady Eagle standout Sarah Gardpipe led all scorers with 20 points.
Friday night in St. Regis, the Lady Bobcats used the same formula to achieve another 14C win. They once again jumped out to a big first quarter leading, 24-6, then added to it in the second quarter to develop a formidable 46-18 lead by halftime.
St. Regis tried to catch up in the fourth quarter by slicing eight points off the Superior lead but the deficit was more than they could overcome.
Pereira once again led Superior in scoring with 15 points, many off defensive pressure. She was joined in double figure scoring by forward Lanie Crabb, who had 10 points. Teammates Haskins, Payton Milender and Patko all added nine to the Lady Cats cause.
Standout senior forward Macy Hill topped the St. Regis scoring list with 15 points, most of them in the second half.
The loss dropped the young Lady Tigers to 2-5 in the conference and 5-6 overall.
Superior’s boys team, meanwhile, continued to fight hard throughout a game, only to come up just short at the final buzzer. Saturday night they fell behind host Two Eagle River, trailing 12-6 at the conclusion of the first eight minutes of play.
They then rallied in the second quarter, outscoring the Eagles 12-7 to enter halftime behind 19-18. Two Eagle held onto that narrow lead most of the rest of the way and outscored Superior 27-22 in the second half to eke out the 14C win.
The loss dropped Superior to 2-5 in conference games and 3-8 on the season. Two Eagle River moved to 5-2 in league play, good enough for third place, and 8-4 overall.
Friday night in St. Regis, the Bobcats ran into a group of angry Tigers, still smarting from their first loss of the season last weekend at the hands of Charlo.
St. Regis roared out to a 23-6 first quarter lead and never looked back, paced by the scoring of senior forward Caleb Ball, who the week before had become St. Regis’ all-time career scoring leader. Friday night Ball scored a game-high 18 points.
Superior fought back in the second quarter, but could only slice two points off the Tigers’ lead and went to the halftime intermission trailing 33-18. From there St. Regis went on a rampage and outscored the visitors 38-17 in the second half as they coasted to their tenth win of the season. The second-place Tigers are 6-1 in 14C play and 10-1 on the year, while Superior is 2-4 in league play and 3-7 for the season.
Superior’s boys and girls hit the road, all 27 miles of it, to take on Alberton Friday night, then return home the following night in a Senior Night game versus Noxon.
The St. Regis teams travel to Hot Springs Friday evening, then return home for a pivotal conference match against Two Eagle River in boys play.