Moniteau can't overcome big deficit in loss
CHERRY TWP — Beating an undefeated team this late in the high school basketball season usually requires more than one good half.
Unfortunately for Moniteau's girls, they managed only one good half against Keystone Friday night.
The Warriors' second-half rally wasn't enough to overcome a 19-point deficit at halftime as the visiting Panthers (11-0) remained unbeaten with a 55-44 win.
Moniteau was just four of 25 from the field (16 percent) in the first two quarters.
“I'm not sure what happened in the first half,” said Moniteau coach Dee Arblaster. “Keystone is a really good team, but that was the worst half I've seen us play in a long time.”
Despite their poor shooting, the Warriors had not buried themselves through the first quarter and a half, trailing Keystone 21-12.
The Panthers used the final 3:20 of the second quarter to go on a 10-0 run and the Warriors were faced with a 31-12 hole at the break.
“At halftime, it was a pretty somber mood in our locker room,” said Arblaster.
“We try to anticipate what teams are going to do and sometimes it takes a while to adjust to the pace,” said Keystone coach Josh Almes of his team's late run. “We've had some tough games the last couple of years, learned some hard lessons. The girls are figuring out how to do things the right way.”
The Warriors played much better in the third quarter, but their comeback attempt truly began in the fourth quarter. They trailed 46-26 at the start of the period, but when Zoey Hillwig sank a basket with 2:40 left, Moniteau had trimmed its deficit to 49-40. The sequence capped a 14-3 run, but the Panthers soon emerged from their offensive drought. A basket from Danae Hurrelbrink and free throws from Jozee Weaver and Emily Lauer steadied Keystone's ship.
“I give a lot of credit to Moniteau with the way they responded to our run to end the first half,” said Almes. “We've gotten to (11-0) because of a lot of good decision making.”
The Panthers had already defeated Moniteau, 53-41, in the season opener.
Aslyn Pry paced the Warriors (8-4) with 21 points and 13 rebounds.
Lauer (17 points), Hurrelbrink (13) and center Natalie Bowser (11) each scored in double figures for the Panthers.
Bowser's nine points and nine rebounds in the first half were a big reason for Moniteau's troubles.
“She's just a sophomore,” Almes said. “She was our top player off the bench last year. She's still young and the rhythm of the game is still coming to her.”
“She's a good player,” Arblaster said of Bowser. “She uses her size well.”
KEYSTONE 55
Emily Lauer 7 3-7 17, Maddie Dunlap 3 0-0 6, Danae Hurrelbrink 5 2-4 13, Jozee Weaver 2 4-6 8, Natalie Bowser 4 3-7 11, Faith Young 0 0-0 0, Rori Vickers 0 0-0 0. Totals: 21 12-24 55.
MONITEAU 44
Abby Rottman 1 0-0 3, Aslyn Pry 5 11-13 21, Zoey Hillwig 2 0-0 4, Catherine Kelly 3 0-0 7, Abbey Jewart 1 0-0 3, Camryn Fallen 1 1-2 3, Victoria Pry 1 1-2 3, Autumn Stewart 0 0-0 0, Davina Pry 0 0-0 0. Totals: 14 13-17 44.
Keystone 16 15 15 9 — 55
Moniteau7 5 14 18 — 44
3-point goals: Keystone 1 (Hurrelbrink); Moniteau 3 (Rottman, Kelly, Jewart).
Saturday: Moniteau at Brockway
