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Close, but not close enough!
The Dodgeville girls basketball team gave SWC champion Richland Center all they could handle Thursday night, but eventually yielded to the Hornets 66-57.
"We did a much better job being patient with our offense and handling their pressure then we did the last time we played them," said Dodger coach Josh Busch. He was referring to their loss at Center January 28th. 81-59.
Freshman Taylor Stanek poured in a game-high 21 points on the night, all coming in the first three quarters.
Senior and all-time leading scorer Rachel Pope was held to 10 points by the Hornet defense.
The Hornets countered with four players in double figures, led by senior Kelsey Collins and junior Mckenzie Wilson both with 12 points. Seniors Kelly Lynch and Emily Anderson each added 11.
The Dodgers trailed at the close of every quarter, 17-14, 35-29 and 51-44, but tied it at the 5:39 mark of the third 36 all.
Center hit 10 of 16 free throws in an 18 point second quarter.
Busch said, "We did a nice job in our half court offense in the first quarter, but in the second quarter we tried to run with them and had too many one shot and done possessions. We were patient again in the third quarter and attacked when we could. In the fourth quarter we had a couple of turnovers and missed easy shots when we got to within four a few times.."
Also in the fourth quarter, The Hornets went into a pretty effective stall and got to the free throw line almost every possession in the final two minutes.
"Richland Center makes it tough when they go into their stall. They have some very good ball handlers," Busch pointed out.
"Tonight again was a very intense game and a lot like tournament atmosphere. I'm very proud of our effort and the way we played. Going into tournaments you want that kind of momentum," he concluded.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Richland Center 17 16 15 16-66
Dodgeville 14 15 16 12-57
BOX SCORE
Richland Center 66 (fg, ft, tp) Wilson 2-8/11-12, Anderson 4-1/3-11, Collins 3-6/7-12, Beranek 0-3/4-3, Schauf 2-2/3-6, Campbell 0-0/2-0, Deets 1-0/2-2, Lynch 3-5/7-11, Schultz 4-1/2-9. Totals 19-26-44-66. F-22.
Dodgeville 57: Stanek 6-7/12-21, Pope 3-3/4-10, Crowley 1-0-2, Ley 0-1/2-1, Bakker 1-1/2-3, McConnell 4-0-9, Bauman 0-0-0, Lee 3-0-6, Dalsing 0-1/2-1, Zoet 1-2/2-4. Totals 19-17/23-57. F-29. FO-Pope, Crowley, McConnell. 3-pointers: Pope, McConnell.
JV-Dodgeville 39 Richland Center 37