by Jack McLoone

It was a big week for the Oriole girls basketball team.

The Orioles remain within striking distance of the Western Cloverbelt Conference leaders, as they entered this week in fourth place with a 6-4 mark, just behind Chippewa Falls McDonell with some key games coming up within the next week.

The Orioles challenged the Macs Tuesday night and host Regis Thursday before getting another shot at second-place Osseo-Fairchild Tuesday night on the S-B home court.

The Orioles were in control from the opening tip-off against Altoona at home Friday night, and buried the Rails 61-41 in what was an impressive display all around. Marissa Gustafson started things off on the right note, draining a three-pointer from the top of the key after scooping up the opening tip. She then scored on a layup on the next possession. Lily Hoel scored inside to put the Orioles up 70 to force a quick Altoona timeout.

That didn’t stop the Oriole steam roller. After a S-B steal, Hoel was fouled driving, and she connected on an old-fashioned three pointer, and with two minutes off the clock, the Orioles were up 10-0.

They kept that pace after the Rails got on the board. Aaliyah Moore assisted Leslie Derks to make the score 16-6. The Rails made a quick run to get within six, but S-B quickly corrected that. Kayte Licht snared a rebound and raked her way the length of the court through Altoona defenders for a layup that made the score 23-13.

Altoona drained a three at the halftime buzzer that made the score 29-17.

Licht and Marissa Gustafson scored for S-B, and then Derks buried Altoona with back-toback three pointers. Teagen Becker hit a three and Mallory Gustafson scored, and the Orioles were up 45-27 and in control.

“That was probably the best start of a game we’ve had this year and that made a big difference,” Coach Alison Becker said. “I thought the players really displayed their love for the game tonight. I was very proud of them tonight.”

Marissa Gustafson led the team with 22 points and five rebounds, hitting all 10 of her free throw attempts. Hoel scored 13 points, grabbed seven rebounds and recorded three steals. Leslie Derks scored eight points and also grabbed seven rebounds against the Railroaders. Teagen Becker also scored nine points for the Orioles.

Stanley-Boyd vs. Thorp The Orioles handled Thorp 40-30 Tuesday night at their home court. Before the game, the Cardinals were 2-6 in conference play.

Lily Hoel dominated in the paint and finished with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Teagen Becker scored seven points and Mallory Eslinger hit two of three shots from deep to finish with six points. Emily Brenner grabbed four rebounds for second-most on the team. The Orioles strong team defense held the Cardinal’s two leading scorers to combine for less than ten points when they average over 20 points per game combined.

Photo by Joseph Back.