Girls impressive in win against Pekin, run out
of gas vs. SHG
By Joe Pritchett
Chatham Editor
With all of the games completed except one, the final pieces had fallen into place for the Glenwood
Titans girls basketball team.
The Glenwood-SHG matchup at the Glenwood Thanksgiving Tournament ended up being for the
overall title, with the Blazers coming in undefeated and the Titans having one loss.
But SHG (5-0) proved too strong for GHS on this night, posting a 68-40 victory in a game that counts
in the Central State Eight Conference standings.
"We ended up being in position to win it," Glenwood head coach Mark Lash stated. "But in the
second half, with their size, and the fact we had played an overtime game earlier in the day, I think we
just ran out of gas. We had no answers for them in the second half."
Glenwood finished 3-2, as did Dunlap and Pekin, with the Dragons taking home the second place
trophy on a tiebreaker. Mattoon finished 1-4, while Rochester was 0-5. SHG's Mallory Beck was named
the MVP, and Glenwood's Alexa Frank and Emily Lundin were both named to the All-Tournament team.
•SHG dominated the interior, posting a 37-19 rebounding advantage. The Blazers took a whopping
34 more shots than the Titans did and committed 13 fewer turnovers.
The Blazers led 10-2 early on before baskets by Nicole Joerger and Kim Wilson, along with free
throws from Lundin, cut the deficit to 14-9 after one period.
The Titans got as close as one point in the second quarter, as Lundin had two straight baskets, the
second coming off a Joerger assist to make it 21-20 with 3:10 left. A jumper and steal and layup from
Brittany Bertoni, along with free throws from Megan McLean and Morgan Brinker, stretched the lead to
31-23 at halftime. McLean, in fact, was fouled at the buzzer by Joerger on a desperation half-court
heave, to the disbelief of Lash and the Glenwood faithful.
SHG pounded the boards again in the third quarter, with a 12-4 edge, and the Titans had trouble
getting back on defense and stopping their transition game. The Blazers led 49-31 after three quarters
and stretched the lead to 20-plus in the fourth after back-to-back 3's by Brinker.
"There wasn't much we could do on the boards," Lash explained. "I thought we did a really good job
defending back in the post, and we tried to double Beck, which may have had something to do with our
struggles inside. We weren't able to get on the weak side boards."
Lundin led Glenwood with 16 points, followed by: Wilson (9), Joerger (7), Frank (5), Allison Fraase
(2) and Kendra Alstott (1). Brinker had 17 points to lead SHG, while Beck had 13 and Bertoni 11.
The Titans finished 18-of-31 from the field and 9-of-20 from the free throw line. GHS had 19
rebounds (Frank 6, Joerger 5, Lundin 3, Wilson 2, Yocum 1, Devita 1, Fraase 1), 24 turnovers and 18
fouls.
SHG finished 23-of-65 from the field and 16-of-23 from the line. The Blazers had 37 rebounds, 11
turnovers and 18 fouls.
•Earlier in the day, the Titans posted a strong second half comeback in claiming a wild 52-51
overtime win over Pekin. Joerger hit a clutch basket in the lane in the closing seconds to tie the game
and send it to OT, and the Titans hit just enough free throws in the extra session to pull it out.
"It's an understatement to say that has been a point of emphasis the last week in practice," Lash
said of the free throws. "We improved the last two games (Pekin, Rochester), but we still have a long
way to go."
The first half was not pretty for Glenwood, as the Dragons took a 25-14 lead to the locker room. But
in the third quarter, the Titans came to life and down the stretch the game was quite a barn-burner.
"We came out and matched them blow for blow and got some defensive stops," Lash explained. "I
told the girls we played zero defense in the first half. But in the second half we were getting off the ball
and helping cutters and defending against screens. And we also got patient on the offensive end and
started executing."
Fraase, whom Lash noted had a strong final three games of the tournament, had bookend baskets
in the third quarter, and the Titans methodically cut the deficit to just 35-31 heading to the fourth. Frank
had four points and Lundin added a layup in a quick spurt early in the third to cut the Pekin lead to five.
In the fourth quarter, a swift 7-0 run put Glenwood up 38-35, as Lundin had a rebound basket,
Fraase hit a baseline jumper and Lundin added another layup and free throw.
Saddled with four fouls, Lundin hit two free throws with 2:32 left to put GHS up 40-38, but Pekin tied it
on a basket by Kierstyn Cagle and later Lauren Cash hit a 17-foot jumper to give the Dragons the lead at
42-40 with 34 seconds to play.
Joerger missed a 3-pointer, and Karson Orrick was fouled by Lundin with 12.9 seconds left.
However, she missed, and Frank grabbed the rebound. With 8.5 seconds left, GHS had the ball and
called timeout.
"It was one of our normal out of bounds plays, but we don't run it very often," Lash explained. "We
wanted to get a flex cut, and Nicole had enough basketball savvy to cut back to the ball. She hit a tough
shot."
Joerger, who was scoreless in the game at that point, took the feed from Fraase under the basket
and rose above two Pekin defenders in the lane to nail a 10-foot jumper. Cash's long 3-point attempt at
the buzzer was no good.
Things remained very tight in overtime, but two Cash free throws put Pekin ahead 50-49 with 36
seconds left. And after a Titan turnover, Samantha Harr was fouled, but missed both attempts. Wilson
charged back on the other end and was fouled. She made both shots and Glenwood led 51-50 with
16.9 left.
Frank then rebounded a missed hook shot by Jerilynne Allen, and Wilson was fouled with 4.1
seconds left. She made one of two shots to put GHS up 52-50.
Fraase then stole the inbounds pass in the corner, and threw the ball back towards the lane to
Alaina Bisch, who collided with Harr. Incredibly, Bisch was called for a foul with 0.2 seconds left and the
Dragons some 90 feet away from their basket. But Harr missed the first free throw attempt and the
Titans pulled out the victory.
Wilson and Lundin each led Glenwood with 14 points, followed by: Frank (11), Bisch (4), Fraase (3),
Joerger (2), Alstott (2) and Mary Beth Bahlmann (2). Cagle led Pekin with 15 points, while Cash added
13.
The Titans finished 18-of-43 from the field and 16-of-27 from the free throw line. Glenwood had 32
rebounds (Frank 11, Lundin 8 Wilson 4, Fraase 3, Joerger 3, Bisch 2, Alstott 1), 16 turnovers and 22
fouls.
Pekin was 18-of-48 from the field and 14-of-28 from the line. The Dragons had 29 rebounds, 16
turnovers and 22 fouls.
•On Friday night, the Titans started quickly against Rochester and held on for a 49-46 victory. Frank
had six points and Joerger four as GHS led 13-2 after one quarter. The Titans led 27-19 at halftime and
35-30 after three quarters.
The Titans made just 14-of-27 free throws, while the Rockets were 14-of-19 overall. Frank and
Lundin each scored 13 points to lead Glenwood, while Joerger added 10. Bisch had six second half
points for the Titans, while Fraase had five points. Wilson and Bahlmann each scored one point. Taryn
Butler and Lauren Capps each led Rochester with 11 points.
•Coming up, Glenwood travels to Jacksonville Thursday night (sophomores 6 p.m., followed by
varsity) and Normal West on Monday (sophs at 6, varsity to follow). The Titans host Taylorville next
Thursday, Dec. 10.
of gas vs. SHG
By Joe Pritchett
Chatham Editor
With all of the games completed except one, the final pieces had fallen into place for the Glenwood
Titans girls basketball team.
The Glenwood-SHG matchup at the Glenwood Thanksgiving Tournament ended up being for the
overall title, with the Blazers coming in undefeated and the Titans having one loss.
But SHG (5-0) proved too strong for GHS on this night, posting a 68-40 victory in a game that counts
in the Central State Eight Conference standings.
"We ended up being in position to win it," Glenwood head coach Mark Lash stated. "But in the
second half, with their size, and the fact we had played an overtime game earlier in the day, I think we
just ran out of gas. We had no answers for them in the second half."
Glenwood finished 3-2, as did Dunlap and Pekin, with the Dragons taking home the second place
trophy on a tiebreaker. Mattoon finished 1-4, while Rochester was 0-5. SHG's Mallory Beck was named
the MVP, and Glenwood's Alexa Frank and Emily Lundin were both named to the All-Tournament team.
•SHG dominated the interior, posting a 37-19 rebounding advantage. The Blazers took a whopping
34 more shots than the Titans did and committed 13 fewer turnovers.
The Blazers led 10-2 early on before baskets by Nicole Joerger and Kim Wilson, along with free
throws from Lundin, cut the deficit to 14-9 after one period.
The Titans got as close as one point in the second quarter, as Lundin had two straight baskets, the
second coming off a Joerger assist to make it 21-20 with 3:10 left. A jumper and steal and layup from
Brittany Bertoni, along with free throws from Megan McLean and Morgan Brinker, stretched the lead to
31-23 at halftime. McLean, in fact, was fouled at the buzzer by Joerger on a desperation half-court
heave, to the disbelief of Lash and the Glenwood faithful.
SHG pounded the boards again in the third quarter, with a 12-4 edge, and the Titans had trouble
getting back on defense and stopping their transition game. The Blazers led 49-31 after three quarters
and stretched the lead to 20-plus in the fourth after back-to-back 3's by Brinker.
"There wasn't much we could do on the boards," Lash explained. "I thought we did a really good job
defending back in the post, and we tried to double Beck, which may have had something to do with our
struggles inside. We weren't able to get on the weak side boards."
Lundin led Glenwood with 16 points, followed by: Wilson (9), Joerger (7), Frank (5), Allison Fraase
(2) and Kendra Alstott (1). Brinker had 17 points to lead SHG, while Beck had 13 and Bertoni 11.
The Titans finished 18-of-31 from the field and 9-of-20 from the free throw line. GHS had 19
rebounds (Frank 6, Joerger 5, Lundin 3, Wilson 2, Yocum 1, Devita 1, Fraase 1), 24 turnovers and 18
fouls.
SHG finished 23-of-65 from the field and 16-of-23 from the line. The Blazers had 37 rebounds, 11
turnovers and 18 fouls.
•Earlier in the day, the Titans posted a strong second half comeback in claiming a wild 52-51
overtime win over Pekin. Joerger hit a clutch basket in the lane in the closing seconds to tie the game
and send it to OT, and the Titans hit just enough free throws in the extra session to pull it out.
"It's an understatement to say that has been a point of emphasis the last week in practice," Lash
said of the free throws. "We improved the last two games (Pekin, Rochester), but we still have a long
way to go."
The first half was not pretty for Glenwood, as the Dragons took a 25-14 lead to the locker room. But
in the third quarter, the Titans came to life and down the stretch the game was quite a barn-burner.
"We came out and matched them blow for blow and got some defensive stops," Lash explained. "I
told the girls we played zero defense in the first half. But in the second half we were getting off the ball
and helping cutters and defending against screens. And we also got patient on the offensive end and
started executing."
Fraase, whom Lash noted had a strong final three games of the tournament, had bookend baskets
in the third quarter, and the Titans methodically cut the deficit to just 35-31 heading to the fourth. Frank
had four points and Lundin added a layup in a quick spurt early in the third to cut the Pekin lead to five.
In the fourth quarter, a swift 7-0 run put Glenwood up 38-35, as Lundin had a rebound basket,
Fraase hit a baseline jumper and Lundin added another layup and free throw.
Saddled with four fouls, Lundin hit two free throws with 2:32 left to put GHS up 40-38, but Pekin tied it
on a basket by Kierstyn Cagle and later Lauren Cash hit a 17-foot jumper to give the Dragons the lead at
42-40 with 34 seconds to play.
Joerger missed a 3-pointer, and Karson Orrick was fouled by Lundin with 12.9 seconds left.
However, she missed, and Frank grabbed the rebound. With 8.5 seconds left, GHS had the ball and
called timeout.
"It was one of our normal out of bounds plays, but we don't run it very often," Lash explained. "We
wanted to get a flex cut, and Nicole had enough basketball savvy to cut back to the ball. She hit a tough
shot."
Joerger, who was scoreless in the game at that point, took the feed from Fraase under the basket
and rose above two Pekin defenders in the lane to nail a 10-foot jumper. Cash's long 3-point attempt at
the buzzer was no good.
Things remained very tight in overtime, but two Cash free throws put Pekin ahead 50-49 with 36
seconds left. And after a Titan turnover, Samantha Harr was fouled, but missed both attempts. Wilson
charged back on the other end and was fouled. She made both shots and Glenwood led 51-50 with
16.9 left.
Frank then rebounded a missed hook shot by Jerilynne Allen, and Wilson was fouled with 4.1
seconds left. She made one of two shots to put GHS up 52-50.
Fraase then stole the inbounds pass in the corner, and threw the ball back towards the lane to
Alaina Bisch, who collided with Harr. Incredibly, Bisch was called for a foul with 0.2 seconds left and the
Dragons some 90 feet away from their basket. But Harr missed the first free throw attempt and the
Titans pulled out the victory.
Wilson and Lundin each led Glenwood with 14 points, followed by: Frank (11), Bisch (4), Fraase (3),
Joerger (2), Alstott (2) and Mary Beth Bahlmann (2). Cagle led Pekin with 15 points, while Cash added
13.
The Titans finished 18-of-43 from the field and 16-of-27 from the free throw line. Glenwood had 32
rebounds (Frank 11, Lundin 8 Wilson 4, Fraase 3, Joerger 3, Bisch 2, Alstott 1), 16 turnovers and 22
fouls.
Pekin was 18-of-48 from the field and 14-of-28 from the line. The Dragons had 29 rebounds, 16
turnovers and 22 fouls.
•On Friday night, the Titans started quickly against Rochester and held on for a 49-46 victory. Frank
had six points and Joerger four as GHS led 13-2 after one quarter. The Titans led 27-19 at halftime and
35-30 after three quarters.
The Titans made just 14-of-27 free throws, while the Rockets were 14-of-19 overall. Frank and
Lundin each scored 13 points to lead Glenwood, while Joerger added 10. Bisch had six second half
points for the Titans, while Fraase had five points. Wilson and Bahlmann each scored one point. Taryn
Butler and Lauren Capps each led Rochester with 11 points.
•Coming up, Glenwood travels to Jacksonville Thursday night (sophomores 6 p.m., followed by
varsity) and Normal West on Monday (sophs at 6, varsity to follow). The Titans host Taylorville next
Thursday, Dec. 10.
Chatham Clarion
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Issue Date: Dec. 3, 2009
