Cyclone girls break through at St. Albert, 49-35
COUNCIL BLUFFS (Jan. 20) -- As the final seconds ticked away on Harlan Community’s 49-35 win over the St. Albert girls Monday night, one could almost hear a collective exhale from Cyclone players, coaches and fans.
Nearly six weeks removed from its last victory, HCHS used an impressive 22-2 run in the second half to take down the 10th-ranked (1A) Saintes for the second time this season and snap a frustrating seven-game losing streak.
The outcome was determined at the free throw line as the Cyclones knocked down 18-of-21 attempts (15-of-18 in the second half) and St. Albert finished a dismal 1-of-11.
Another streak also ended Monday as the Saintes (8-4) lost for the first time in their last seven outings. HCHS improved to 5-7 overall and now finds itself in a four-way tie for fourth place in the Hawkeye Ten - along with St. Albert - at 3-3.
“They’re pretty pumped up,” said HCHS coach Zach Klaassen of his team’s postgame mood. “It was hard for me to talk to them afterward just because they had so much to say. It’s awesome to see. I’ve been proud of them just for the effort. Not everybody plays as hard as they do, and to lose seven in a row like that and keep grinding and keep playing and keep believing, it says a lot about who they are.”
The streak, which included five losses to highly-rated opponents, didn’t end without some adversity.
It was 16-all at the break and the Cyclones fell behind 25-20 near the midway point of the third quarter before putting together one of their best stretches of basketball all season.
The 22-2 spurt started with a pair of Caitlyn Leinen free throws, an inside bucket by Macie Leinen and a fast break three-point play from Ashley Hall. Raegen Wicks’ second three-pointer of the period (with :04 left) put the Cyclones up 32-27 and they would add the first 10 points of the fourth to take control.
HCHS could do no wrong during its run, getting consistent stops on defense, scoring in transition, breaking pressure, getting the ball inside and finishing as well as making foul shots.
“It looked like basketball,” said Klaassen.
Brecken Van Baale knocked down 6-of-8 free throws and led a balanced Cyclone scoring attack with 11 points. Macie Leinen and Hall scored eight points each, Claire Schmitz, Wicks and Caitlyn Leinen all scored six and Jocelyn Cheek chipped in four - all at the charity stripe.