Staff writer
The Centre Lady Cougars defeated Rural Vista Saturday 53-42 to place third in the Herington Preseason Tournament. They defeated Herington and lost to Northern Heights earlier in the week.
Bryanna Svoboda had her best game of the week Saturday, scoring 13 points. Shelby Makovec had 12 points, Cacey Simons 9, Amy Makovec 8, and Makenzie Deines 7. Brenna Shields and Ally Basore added two points each.
A 22-12 first quarter gave Centre a scoring advantage that sustained the team throughout the game. Svoboda scored a trey, and Deines had three field goals. Amy Makovec and Simons had two field goals. Simons had two free throws and Shields added one.
“I was really pleased with the way we came out in the first quarter,” Coach Alan Stahlecker said. “Our press was somewhat effective and the girls did a good job of taking the ball to the basket.”
Neither team scored much in the second quarter. Centre led 27-18 at halftime. Svoboda, Shelby Makovec, and Simons each made 3-pointers in the third quarter. Together with field goals from Amy Makovec and Ally Basore, Centre outscored Rural Vista, 15-11. Both teams scored 11 points in the fourth quarter, resulting in a 4-point victory for the Lady Cougars.
“I was pleased to see us able to maintain about a 10-point lead throughout and have balanced scoring,” Stahlecker said.
Herington
Centre got off to a strong start Dec. 10 in the first game of the tournament, defeating Herington 56-29.
Svoboda and the Makovec girls combined for the first five field goals of the game for a 10-0 lead. Turnovers were common on both sides. After Cacey Simons made a free throw and a trey, Centre led 14-7 at the end of the first quarter.
Herington made seven unanswered points and caught up to Centre five minutes into the second quarter. Simons went on to make a two and Shelby Makovec a three to regain a 19-14 lead at halftime.
The Lady Cougars surged ahead in the third quarter. At 3:56, Centre led by 14 points. Baskets by Shields, Simons, and Amy Makovec resulted in a 35-23 score at the end of the quarter. The girls increased their lead in the fourth quarter, outscoring Herington 19-6 for a 27-point victory.
Shelby Makovec was the leading scorer with 19 points. Simons had 17.
Northern Heights
Playing Northern Heights Thursday was another story. The game was tied at 8 when Cacey Simons made a field goal to give Centre a first-quarter lead. It proved to be their only lead of the game. However, the game was tied three times in the second quarter, and Heights led by just two points, 18-16, at halftime.
The Lady Cougars struggled with turnovers in the second half, as Heights got stronger. Centre trailed by five points at the end of the third quarter and finished the game with a deficit of 23 points. The final score was 58-35.
Shelby Makovec and Simons made all of Centre’s points. Makovec had 19 and Simons 16.