ASHLAND, Wis. – The Yellowjacket women's basketball team traveled to their lone Wisconsin neighbor in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC), facing the LumberJills of Northland College. Superior, who entered the contest tied for the top seed in league action with Northwestern, looked to compile positive momentum heading into a contest with the Vikings of Bethany Lutheran.
And they got just that, as every Yellowjacket contributed to defeat the 'Jills 76-38.
Game Notes
- Despite NC getting a defensive rebound off the first possession and scoring first, the Yellowjackets turned it around and maintained the lead thereon. Charlotte Ferstl (Plain, Wis./River Valley) grabbed an offensive board and put it back for a quick two points before she threw that in the copy machine just 40 seconds later.
- MyKenzie Leccia (Somerset, Wis./Somerset) and Katie Dobson (Black River Falls, Wis./Black River Falls) doubled down on three pointers before Elsa Olson (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) hit the third trey in a row, leading 13-8. Elise Besonen (Ewen, Mich./Ewen-Trout Creek), alongside Emily Dehler (Pierz, Minn./Pierz Healy) paced the 'Jackets to lead by 17 at 22-5.
- After checking into the game, Haylie Jerde (Isanti, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti) took a pass from Besonen and drained a shot beyond the arc that led way for Chloe Peterson (Hutchinson, Minn./Hutchinson) to hit a midrange jumper of her own. Quarter one wrapped up with UWS taking charge at 27-10.
- A handful of turnovers and steals plagued both teams in the start of the second, but Ferstl got things back on track with a pair of made free throws and a put-back layup.
- Olson, Besonen and Jerde later boosted Superior's lead before Hannah Hause (Stanley, Wis./Stanley-Boyd) drew a late foul and split both free throws, leading 40-15 at the half.
- Ferstl and Besonen spearheaded the offensive output coming out of the break. Peterson returned with a fastbreak layup from Kyra Latvala (Solon Springs, Wis./Solon Springs), who drew a steal midway through the quarter. Later she drew a foul and split her two shots from the charity stripe before she set up Jerde for a long ball, giving the 'Jackets a 42-point advantage.
- In the waning minutes of the third, Latvala set Reese Aune (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing) up for a three and she capitalized before finishing a layup inside the paint to lead 64-25 heading into the final period.
- The LumberJills tried to muster up offense, but the 'Jackets continued to score as the bench emptied. Emily Coonrod (Hastings, Minn./Randolph) and Colleen Claude (Centuria, Wis./Homeschool) would hit layups in the opening minutes of the fourth until NC chopped away at the deficit.
- Past the midway point Megan Schafer (Grantsburg, Wis./Grantsburg) utilized a defensive rebound from Hailie Evans (Proctor, Minn./Proctor) and finished a layup, before Evans set up Sydney Crawford (Wausau, Wis./Wausau Area) for a triple late in the game.
- After setting up her teammates for treys, Evans got one of her own with 21 seconds left after taking a fed from Coonrod. At this point, the 'Jackets had secured a 76-38 win.
- UWS was led by Ferstl and Besonen, who scored 14 and 13, respectively. Ferstl shot 66 percent from the field while garnering her second double-double of the campaign.
With Northwestern dropping their midweek matchup with Bethany Lutheran, the 'Jackets now move into sole possession of first place on the UMAC leaderboard. They will return home Saturday to face the Vikings on Senior Day, with an opening tipoff scheduled for 4:45 p.m. inside the Mertz.
