Wallace girls fall to Southwest, Hitchcock County
The Wallace girls’ basketball team will head into the postseason on a two-game losing streak after losses last week to Southwest and Hitchcock County.
Southwest
After a Kendyl Flaming basket to start Wallace scoring last Tuesday against the Roughriders (11-9), the Wildcats went to the charity stripe often. Reagan Pelster, Mariah Gardner, and Karlie Finley combined to score four-straight points at the free throw line.
Finley broke the streak with a basket, but Flaming made a free throw before a Gardner three pointer ended the first quarter with Wallace trailing by one point, 12-13.
Gardner opened the second quarter with three-straight field goals. Pelster, Finley and Ainsley Strawder scored the Wildcats’ next five points with 5-6 shooting at the free throw line.
Flaming rattled in a basket before Gardner gave Wallace a 27-21 halftime lead with two more free throws.
The Wildcats’ advantage was erased in the third quarter. Finley and Gardner each made two field goals, but Wallace was limited to two missed free throws.
When it came to free throw shooting, the tables turned in the fourth quarter. Forced to foul late in the game, Wallace sent the Roughriders to the free throw line. Southwest made 6-8 and, with the addition of two three pointers, outscored Wallace in the fourth quarter.
Flaming and Finley each made two field goals to go with a Gardner bucket and a Flaming free throw.
The Wildcats lost the game 47-53.
Wallace girls 46,
Southwest 53
2 PT. 3 PT. FT/
FG FG FTA F TP
Kendyl Flaming 4 0 2-4 2 10
Denay Pelster 0 0 0-0 1 0
Karlie Finley 5 0 3-6 2 13
Reagan Pelster 0 0 3-4 4 3
Danana Garrison 0 0 0-0 2 0
Mariah Gardner 6 1 4-5 4 19
Ainsley Strawder 0 0 1-2 0 1
WALLACE TOTALS 15 1 13-21 15 46
SW TOTALS 18 2 11-16 15 53
Points by quarters:
Wallace 12 15 8 11—46
Southwest 13 8 14 18—53
Wallace JV 10, SW JV 18
Wallace JV—J. Gardner, 2; McConnell, 6; Robertson, 2.
Wallace JV totals: 2 pt. FG—4; 3 pt. FG—0; FT/FTA—2-2; Fouls—5; TP—10.
Points by quarters:
Wallace JV — 6 — 4—10
Southwest JV — 8 — 10—18
Hitchcock County
Wallace traveled to 8-14 Hitchcock County Friday.
For the second game in a row, Wallace had plenty of chances from the charity stripe. Flaming started the Wildcats off with a field goal, but Pelster soon added to Wallace’s total with one free throw. Pelster followed a Finley basket with two more free throws before Flaming rounded out Wallace’s first quarter scoring with another basket.
Hanging onto a 9-7 lead, the Wildcats got baskets from Flaming, Denay Pelster and Finley in the second quarter, but only made 2-6 free throws.
Hitchcock County’s only basket of the quarter was a three pointer, but the Falcons’ took advantage of their chances at the charity stripe, making 6-7 free throws.
The teams headed into the locker rooms with Wallace leading 19-16.
Finley scored the Wildcats’ first two points of the second half from the free throw line. After five-straight points by Dajana Garrison, a free throw each by Strawder and Flaming rounded out Wallace’s scoring.
Hanging onto a 28-26 lead, Wallace went cold in the fourth quarter. Garrison made the team’s only basket, a three pointer. Flaming, Finley and Garrison each went 1-2 from the free throw line. Behind three 3s and 5-8 free throw shooting, the Falcons grabbed the lead and sent Wallace home with a 34-42 loss.
Garrison led Wallace with nine points. Flaming and Finley each scored eight points. Finley pulled down eight rebounds.
Head Coach Shawn Sullivan said it seems like Wallace just can’t get a few buckets to fall late in game and gets content passing it around a little more than attacking.
When Wallace gets the ball inside consistently it has success all around, he added
“That has to be our focus all four quarters from start to finish,” Sullivan said.
Wallace girls 34,
Hitchcock County 42
2 PT. 3 PT. FT/
FG FG FTA F TP
Kendyl Flaming 3 0 2-6 3 8
Denay Pelster 1 0 0-0 4 2
Karlie Finley 2 0 4-6 1 8
Reagan Pelster 0 0 4-9 5 4
Dajana Garrison 1 2 1-2 3 9
Mariah Gardner 1 0 0-0 4 2
Ainsley Strawder 0 0 1-2 2 1
WALLACE TOTALS 8 2 12-25 19 34
HC TOTALS 6 6 12-19 21 42
Points by quarters:
Wallace 9 10 9 6—34
Hitchcock County 7 9 10 16—42
Up next
With DCS forfeiting its first round subdistrict game to Wauneta-Palisade, the Wildcats (12-9) were able to host Paxton (9-12) Tuesday night for their first round game. The winner will play at WP Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
“We are fortunate to host Tuesday due to unfortunate circumstances with DCS so we have seized that opportunity,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan said Wallace didn’t get a win for the seniors’ last home game so having another shot at that and the fact that the winner moves on to play another night is a lot of motivation for Wallace.