The MACA boys took care of business Friday (12/21)at home, winning by a
margin of ten over the Montevideo Thunder Hawks. It was the team's fifth
win against one loss. MACA owned a 25-21 lead halfway through.
The Tigers' post attack eventually overwhelmed the visitor. MACA
fans are having to adjust their thinking about what constitutes a winning point total. Bushels-full of points are not the aim of this
year's orange and black crew, at least to date. On Friday the Tigers
finished with 58, ten more than Monte.
A fan can fairly say it's not a highly crowd-pleasing style. But a
5-1 record would neverthelss be cause for great satisfaction at this
stage of the season. The Tigers under coach Mark Torgerson are
accomplishing their objective. They relentlessly worked the ball inside
Friday.
A quartet of post-oriented players did much of the offensive work.
Austin Dierks has been making lots of noise with his offense, at least
as much as the deliberate scheme will allow, and on Friday he scored a
team-high 22 points. Nick Vipond and Lincoln Berget each put in nine
points. John Tiernan rounds out our listing of post players and his
Friday contribution was six points.
Three other Tigers connected for points in this 58-48 triumph: Logan Manska 7, Tom Holland 3 and Jacob Torgerson 2.
Dierks applied his 6'5" frame to collect a team-best 12 rebounds.
He's a senior. Vipond, a fellow senior who stands six feet-three,
charged the boards to get eight rebounds.
Two non-post players led the way in assists: Jacob Torgerson with
seven and Chandler Erickson with six. Four Tigers each stole the ball
twice: Tom Holland, Berget, Manska and Dierks.
The Tigers were pretty quiet in three-pointers, succeeding just
twice in eight tries. Holland and Manska were the Tigers succeeding with
those shots. In total field goals the Tigers made 24 of 44 tries. In
freethrows: eight of 16.
Monte had a decent night shooting 3's, making six of 17 tries led
by Ryan Maroney and Jesse Brace each with two. Monte also did well in
freethrows with ten of 16 numbers.
But the T-Hawks were done in by the methodical Morris Area Chokio
Alberta offense that accentuated the post attack. Brace was Monte's top
scorer with 18 points.
Girls basketball: Tigers 71, Benson 35
MACA climbed to win No. 5 in girls hoops on Tuesday, Dec. 18. The
success was enjoyed by fans at our Morris Area High varsity gym.
The holiday spirit was heightened by this most decisive 71-35 win.
The overwhelmed opponent was Benson. Coach Dale Henrich's squad raced
out to a 37-9 halftime lead. MACA outscored the Braves 34-26 in the
second half.
The game was described as a West Central "inter-conference" game.
Does that make it conference? Please don't confuse me. I found out
shortly into volleyball season that the "north" and "south" designations
were wiped away. This was after I had already reported on Minnewaska
Area being a North foe and thus non-conference. I always thought it odd
that 'Waska would be non-conference. A fan needs to do his homework. I
wonder if the fall and winter alignments differ.
Anyway. . .
Anyway. . .
Three Tigers scored into double figures in the resounding Tuesday
success. Beth Holland's shooting eye was most true as this Tiger put in
19 points. Kaitlin Vogel put in 13 points and surely made grandpa and
grandma Mike and Shirley happy.
Becca Holland attacked the basket for 12 points. Attention all
other media people: Differentiating between the Holland sisters by using
first initials doesn't work!
Kudos to the Tigers' defense Tuesday. Coach Henrich had to smile
about his team limiting Benson to four field goals and one freethrow in
the first half. The Braves were stunned.
Emma Peterson, a Brave who often shines with her talent, made her
mark before this game was over, leading her team with 18 points and a
very impressive five three-pointers. The Tigers had just too
wide an array of weapons for Peterson to keep her team in the game.
Becca Holland was a weapon beyond her 12 points
scored, as she topped three other stat categories. She snared eight
rebounds followed by Vogel with seven. She co-led in assists with
MaKenzie Smith; each had five. Nicole Strobel contributed three assists.
Becca co-led in steals with her sister Beth; each had four, while Smith
came through with three.
The Tigers' three-point shooting was maybe adequate, not
scintillating. Here, three different Tigers had successes: Smith, Beth
Holland and Courtney Gades. The Tigers were three of eleven in
three-point shots. In total field goals: 31 of 69. In freethrows: four
of six.
Following the Holland sisters and Vogel in scoring were: MaKenzie
Smith with seven points, Tracy Meichsner with six, Abbie Olson and Moira
McNally with four each, and Nicole Strobel and Courtney Gades with
three each.
Emma Peterson made all but one of her team's three-pointers. Alexa
Nissen made the other. Peterson had four rebounds and two assists.
The Tigers came out of the night at 5-2.
Boys basketball: Tigers 51, Lac qui Parle 44
The Tigers made their presence felt with their deliberate style and also with winning on Tuesday, Dec. 18. The opponent: Lac qui Parle Valley.
It might not be the kind of basketball that promotes throngs of
fans coming through the turnstiles. One fan even told me that the recent
win over Litchfield, while significant (given Litch's No. 1 ranking
coming in) was rather boring to watch much of the way. That's one
person's opinion.
Winning is a way to wipe aside some of those entertainment
concerns. And win is what the MACA boys did on Tuesday, Dec. 18, playing
at Lac qui Parle.
The Tigers didn't really burn the nets with their 51 points. I can
retire that expression for the rest of this winter perhaps. But win they
did, 51-44 over the host Eagles at that gym/school out in the middle of
nowhere.
The Tigers had to try to neutralize Dylan Erickson. Erickson came
at the Tigers with 23 points, but none of his mates scored in double
figures. Erickson's 23 points was game-high.
The Tigers did fine in three-point shooting with five makes in 14
tries. Jacob Torgerson and Logan Manska led in that category, each with
two successes. Chandler Erickson got the refs to thrust their arms
upward once with his "three."
Lincoln Berget was the top rebounder, snaring seven. Torgerson and Erickson were top assist producers with five each.
The Tigers led 23-17 at halftime. In total field goals the orange
and black squad finished the night at 21-for-46. In freethrows they were
four of nine.
Let's roll up our sleeves for the scoring list. Manska and Austin
Dierks each scored 12 points. Chandler Erickson put in eight points.
Jacob Torgerson and Berget each finished with six. John Tiernan scored
four points and Nick Vipond three.
LQPV did decent in 3's with their five of eleven numbers. In total
field goals the Eagles were 18 of 40. Erickson had three of the
three-point makes while Sawyer Bohn and Brandon Hill (Bart's son?) each
had one.
Girls basketball: NL-Spicer 51, Tigers 28
The Morris Area Chokio Alberta girls were on the road Thursday (12/20) to vie with a team that had yet to lose.
The Tigers carried their own above-.500 credentials into the night.
But host New London-Spicer showed the tools that brought them their 6-0
mark. The Wildcats got their win No. 7. MACA failed to get NL-Spicer
figured out on this night.
The score at halftime was 29-13. And at the end: 51-28.
The Tigers are still over .500. Coach Dale Henrich's crew came out of Thursday at 5-3.
Playing at New London, MACA retreated back into a slump in
three-point shooting. They went zero for eight. They made 13 total field
goals in 53 attempts. In freethrows: two-for-four.
The Wildcats put up three-point tries time and again. They got a
pretty big harvest from this, making ten shots in 27 tries. Their total
field goal stats were 18 of 54.
Wildcat Taylor Thunstedt made four three-pointers to shine in that
category. Taylor's point total was 19, team-best. She also grabbed four
rebounds and contributed seven assists and four steals. Lydia Kieft made
three three-pointers for the host, and finished with eleven points.
This game marked the end of the Tigers' pre-holiday phase. They'll resume action on January 4 (home vs. Paynesville).
MaKenzie Smith and Tracy Meichsner each stole the ball three times.
Meichsner executed three assists. In rebounds it was Abbie Olson
topping the list with her nine followed by three of her mates each with
seven: Smith, Beth Holland and Kaitlin Vogel. We can't list anyone
making a three-point shot, sorry.
On to the scoring list: Beth Holland and her eight points were at
the top. Olson and Vogel each produced five points. then we have five
Tigers each with two points: Cassey Hickman, Smith, Becca Holland,
Meichsner and Moira McNally.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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