Turnovers cost Lady Outlaws in loss

The Lady Outlaws couldn’t seem to hold onto the ball in their game with Cascade on Tuesday, February 1, which resulted in a devastating 71-37 loss.

The Outlaws turned the ball over right from the start and by the end of the first period Cascade held a 20-4 advantage over Sisters.

“We looked like a scared group of girls playing basketball,” said Coach Bill Blevins.

“We had 20 turnovers for the night that resulted in 18 lay-ins for them (Cascade), which makes things rather difficult.”

Blevins told The Nugget that his girls played hard but they didn’t play smart or play with confidence.

“We just didn’t have an answer for their ball press,” added Blevins. “Our fundamentals of dribbling and passing aren’t good enough to be successful.”

Kristi VanBlaricum finished the night with 12 points including two three-pointers.

Jenny Boswell scored nine points, pulled down five rebounds and had six steals. Katie Hughes added eight points.

Cascade is ranked in the top five in the state.

Three days later the Lady Outlaws lost 39-31 to North Marion, which is also ranked as one of the top-10 teams in the state.

Sisters made a marked improvement from the last time they faced the Lady Huskies.

“The first time we played them (NM) their press just killed us,” said Coach Bill Blevins.

“This time around we were able to break the press and get some scoring opportunities,” he said.

North Marion settled into a 2-3 zone which slowed the game down and the Lady Outlaws were patient in finding a good shot.

Sisters came within two in the third quarter but by the end of the period North Marion held a five-point lead.

The Lady Huskies maintained the lead to the end of the game.