Second-half fortunes propel girls, stymie boys

By DAVID COLBURN

News editor

It took a while for the Marion High girls’ basketball team to get rolling against Bennington, but the Warriors put another notch in the win column Friday, 35-25, at the Sports and Aquatics Center.

The game got off to a sluggish start, with both teams scoreless in the first 3 minutes. Kourtney Hansen broke the drought with a basket to give Marion a 2-0 lead, and the Warriors never trailed after that.

Five first-quarter turnovers by Marion kept the cold-shooting Bulldogs within striking distance. Bennington tied the game at 12 in the second quarter, but Hansen followed with 6 consecutive points to give the Warriors an 18-12 halftime lead.

Marion held a comfortable 27-19 lead going into the final quarter, but a Bennington 3-pointer drew the Bulldogs to within 5.

The Warriors stepped up on defense, holding Bennington to a single point for more than 6 minutes. With a couple of layups from Hansen and free throws from Alli Molleker, Sam Richmond, and Jessi Lewman, the Warriors breezed to the win.

Hansen led all scorers with 15 points.

The Warriros took a 4-0 win streak into the Cougar Classic tournament at Centre, where they played Wakefield on Tuesday.

Boys

A revved-up boys’ team took the court Friday intent on giving new head coach Terry Edwards his first home win to go with a 44-34 road win Jan. 9 at Remington.

For almost three quarters, it looked as though the Warriors would deliver.

Tied 9-9 early in the second quarter after a Blaine Mermis basket, the Bulldogs forged ahead with a 10-0 run over the next 3 minutes.

Then Evann Heidebrecht took over.

Drive-and-dish assists by Heidbrecht netted a basket by Noah Dalrymple and a 3-pointer by Zach Stucklik on consecutive possessions. Heidebrecht scored on a slashing drive and a 12-foot jumper, and after another Mermis score, he hit a 15-foot buzzer beater to give the Warriors a 22-21 halftime lead.

Marion went up by as many as 5 points in the third quarter and led 34-33 when Bennington took control with a 9-0 run into the fourth quarter.

With the Warriors still sputtering, the Bulldogs increased the lead to 47-39 when Edwards called a time-out. Marion rallied to within 5 on a Sam Zinn basket with :48 remaining, but ran out of gas, losing 54-47.

Heidebrecht led Marion with 14 points.

The Warriors will be on the court again Thursday in the Cougar Classic at Centre.