SAHS coach Aaron Rios described it as a “nightmare of a game,” but added it was also “a learning experience.”
“We simply didn’t come out ready to play,” Rios noted. “This was the first time all season we didn’t execute our game plan. But that’s on me. I have to make sure we’re ready to go.”
The tone of the game was set early. In the first three minutes, the Lady Bulldogs had seven offensive possessions. They missed three shots and turned the ball over four times. That was a trend that continued for most of the game.
By the end of the first eight minutes, St. Anthony had made just 3-of-14 shots and committed eight turnovers -- and the Lady Warriors took advantage. Taylor Gordon made four shots, two after grabbing offensive rebounds, and Lia Patterson knocked down a three-pointer and converted two of the miscues into baskets, helping the hosts built a 19-7 lead.
“We knew they were going to run that 1-3-1 defense,” Rios said. “When they do that, you have to reverse the basketball and get the ball to the middle of the floor. When we did that, we relaxed and were able to get shots. But we didn’t do that enough. We got caught in some bad positions and Tuscola caused us a lot of problems. We have to take better care of the basketball.”
The Lady Bulldogs never got closer that 12 points the rest of the game. Vonderheide’s basket kept it a 12-point margin early in the second quarter, but Tuscola’s Zoey Thomason connected on a pair of shots from behind the arc. The second one put the Lady Warriors on top by 19 points. It was a 17-point spread, 32-15, at halftime.
“Their press got us out of our ballgame,” Rios said. “And when we did penetrate and get the ball inside, we had a tough time finishing. Their size hurt us.”
The lead hovered between 15 and 21 points through much of the third quarter. A three-point play by Vonderheide served as a spark for SAHS. Nancy Ruholl made a free throw and then drilled a three-pointer and Adysen Rios made a pair of foul shots to narrow the gap to 13 points, 43-30. It was still a 13-point margin heading into the final period.
Sydney Moss scored the first four points of the fourth quarter and Gordon scored again after grabbing a rebound, expanding the lead back to 19 points, 51-32. St. Anthony was unable to get closer than 15 points over the final six minutes.
The only question left to answer was whether or not Ruholl would crack the 1,000-point plateau for her career. As it turns out, she’ll have to wait one more game. The sophomore guard need 22 points, but finished with 21, leaving her with 999 career points.
Vonderheide, who averages in excess of 20 points a game, was limited to 12 points, thanks to the efforts of Patterson, the Lady Warriors defensive specialist.
The Lady Bulldogs shot just 31 percent overall, making 17-of-54 attempts. They were 3-for-11 from long range and 10-for-13 at the free throw line. They finished with 24 turnovers and were out-rebounded 32-26, although Rios pulled down nine boards.
The Lady Warriors had four players in double figures. Moss led the way with 15 points, while Thomason scored 13, Patterson 12 and Gordon 11. Both Moss and Gordon ended up with double-double performances, pulling down 14 and 11 rebounds respectively.
“We lost to a tough team tonight and a great coach,” Rios noted. “We had one of those nights you wish you wouldn’t have, but we’ll learn from this. We’ll get back to work, we’ll re-focus and we’ll get better.”
The Lady Warriors, ranked 7th in Class 1A, improved to 25-2 on the season.
The Lady Bulldogs, who are ranked 6th in the 1A polls, had their 12-game winning streak snapped and dipped to 22-7. They will play their regular-season finale Thursday night at Newton.
St. Anthony will then enter postseason play as the No. 1 seed and host of the regional. The Lady Bulldogs will play at 6 p.m. Monday against either Decatur Unity Christian or Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City.
There is a possibility St. Anthony and Tuscola could play again. If so, it would be in the sectional championship game at Moweaqua (Central A&M).
“I’m confident that if we’re lucky enough to see them again, it will be a good battle,” Rios said. “I think we can matchup with them okay. But we’ll definitely have to clean some things up.”
