It was not the start South O’Brien was looking for in its opening round tournament game with Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire. Turnovers, missed shots and offensive rebounds by GTRA put the Wolverines in an 18-0 hole late in the first quarter. They continued to battle but the deficit was too great as the Titans claimed the Class 1A Region 1 opening round game 45-27 February 10 at Graettinger. South O’Brien ends the season with a record of 3-19.
“Even though we got down early, I thought the girls fought hard to get back in reach,” commented South O’Brien head coach Erica Dreckman. “We got back within 11 points.”
It was a steep climb but the Wolverines trailed only 36-25 with five minutes left in the game. GTRA was held to 13 points over the middle two quarters. “We often switched up the defense,” noted Dreckman. The Titans got four buckets and a free throw down the stretch to seal the win.
With 24 turnovers, South O’Brien was able to put up only 25 shots and the visitors recorded nine baskets to shoot 36 percent. They were most active from beyond the arc with six hoops in 19 attempts. South O’Brien was 3-of-6 at the free throw line. The Titans were 16-of-44 from the floor to also shoot 36 percent. They connected on three of nine three-point tries and 10 of 20 free throws. GTRA turned the ball over 16 times.
The Wolverines got seven points from both Riley Draper and Takara Conley, six from Abby Schreck, three from Taja Conley and two from both Alyssa Van Beek and Tatiana Conley. Draper contributed three assists with Schreck and Taja Conley each assisting on two baskets.
GTRA finished with a 30-11 edge on the boards. Schreck grabbed four rebounds and Draper two. Steals leaders were Draper with three and Taja Conley with two. Samantha Wilbur blocked a shot.
Seniors for the Wolverines are Draper, Schreck, Kenna Bauer, Grace Fuhrman and Willa Sickelka. The latter three have missed games due to injury. “The seniors were great leaders this year,” said their coach. “They modeled hard work on and off the court.”
S. O’Brien
2 5 11 9 – 27
GTRA
18 4 9 14 – 45