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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Panthers School Bears Basketball Powers Learn Tough Lessons

They don’t give style points the first game in January. They give lessons.

There were 48 fouls, 46 turnovers and 63 free throws at Mead before the Panthers beat Central Valley 61-50 in a Greater Spokane League girls basketball game Friday night.

Whoever learns the most from the much-anticipated game probably will play later in March, when the state tournament rolls around.

Both teams know they must shoot much better from the field (17 of 50 for CV, 17 of 52 for Mead) and the line (10 of 24 for CV, 24 of 39 for Mead). They must also protect the ball better (24 CV turnovers, 22 for Mead).

But they also know the shots were there and the defensive efforts had a lot to do with some of the ugly numbers.

“They really dictated to us in the first half,” Central Valley coach Dale Poffenroth said. “They knew what they wanted us to do and they made us do it. There were some sparks of brilliance in the second half.

“They just played pressure man (defense) and forced us out. You’re going to win big games with defense.”

Three times in the first half Mead scored on three consecutive possessions, carving a 28-19 lead. Late in the third quarter, CV got within 38-33, but a 10-1 run in the first half of the fourth quarter effectively ended the game.

Mead coach Jeanne Helfer said, “I thought it was a great effort… . We made some mistakes. I thought our defense was good. We held them to eight field goals in the first half and two were cheap when we didn’t get back (on defense). We contested everything. We didn’t want to let them shoot from the 3-point line.

“We rebounded really well. We got a lot of second shots. We missed them early. If we shoot our normal percent, we have a lot more points.”

There were two big differences besides Mead’s size advantage. CV didn’t have an answer for Mead’s 6-foot junior, Allie Bailey, who had 14 points despite foul trouble. And when Bailey was out, Staci Schuerman came off the bench to score 10 points. CV didn’t have any points off the bench.

Holly Turner added 12 points for Mead and dished off six assists.

Crystal Lee had 17 points for CV but she had to earn them. Andrea Kallas had 14. They combined for 13 points in the fourth quarter, when the Panthers missed enough free throws (10) to give the Bears hope.

Going in, the biggest difference was Mead’s 6-3 post, Jennifer Bennett, five inches taller than Lee. Bennett swatted away two shots on CV’s first possession and had seven of her 15 rebounds in the first quarter.

Mead 61, Central Valley 50

Central Valley 9 10 14 17 - 50

Mead 16 12 13 20 - 61

CENTRAL VALLEY Grafos 0 0-0 0, Clark 3 1-2 7, Kallas 4 3-6 14, Coyle 1 0-0 3, Jackson 3 2-4 9, Lee 6 4-7 17, Bragdon 0 0-3 0. Totals 17 10-24 50.

MEAD Zelinski 2 2-7 7, Kehl 0 0-0 0, Turner 3 4-6 12, Bailey 6 2-2 14, M.Bennett 1 0-2 2, Leaf 1 4-6 6, Wakefield 0 4-6 4, Schuerman 2 6-7 10, Myers 0 0-0 0, J.Bennett 2 2-3 6. Totals 17 24-39 61.

3-point goals - Kallas 2, Coyle, Jackson, Zelinski, turner 2. Total fouls - CV 26, Mead 22. Fouled out - Clark, Jackson, Bailey, J.Bennette.

Ferris 63, North Central 48

Amy George had a career-high 26 points and the Saxons pulled away in the second half against the Indians at Ferris.

The Saxons played without leading scorer Karrie Pruett, who was ill, but Janelle Morrisette contributed 10 points, seven rebounds and seven steals.

North Central 11 11 12 14 - 48

Ferris 13 14 16 20 - 63

NORTH CENTRAL Emery-Cloy 3 4-6 10, White 1 0-0 2, Neilson 0 2-4 2, Hammond 5 7-12 17, Stearns 3 0-2 6, Hayes 1 1-1 5, Brockie 0 0-0 0, Ellenwood 2 2-2 4, Carter 1 0-0 2.

Total - 16 13-24 48.

FERRIS J.Johnson 0 0-0 0, Lytle 2 5-5 9, George 8 7-14 26, Morrisette 5 0-1 10, B.Johnson 0 0-0 0, Brazzle 1 3-4 5, Martin 1 1-2 3, Meeker 0 0-0 0, McCaffery 3 3-6 9, Benzel 1 0-0 1, Blevins 0 0-0 0. Totals - 20 20-33 63.

3-point goals - Hayes, George 3. Total fouls - NC 21, Ferris 20. Fouled out - Stearns, Hayes.

Lewis and Clark 56, University 34

The Tigers outscored the Titans 16-0 in the second quarter and had 11 players score in rolling to the win at the Arena.

University 8 0 12 14 - 34

Lewis and Clark 12 16 17 11 - 56

UNIVERSITY Gazaway 0 0-0 0, Schroeder 1 1-4 3, Frost 4 0-0 8, Whitney 0 1-2 1, Fryer 1 0-0 2, Arnold 2 0-0 4, Conant 3 2-3 10, Nelson 0 2-2 2, Oglesbee 2 0-0 4, Total 13 6-11 34.

LEWIS AND CLARK Marquess 3 0-0 6, Giebel 3 0-0 8, Wendle 2 0-0 5, Huddle 3 5-5 11, Davey 1 0-0 2, Weiler 2 0-4 4, Hansen 2 0-0 4, Thompson 2 1-2 5, Oeljen 3 0-0 6, Storey 1 0-0 2, Ford 1 1-6 3. Totals 23 7-17 56.

3-point goals - Conant 2, Giebel 2, Wendle. Total fouls - U-Hi 15, LC 15. Fouled out - Fryer.

Gonzaga Prep 62, Shadle Park 30

The Bullpups raced to an 18-3 lead in the first quarter and capped the game with an 18-4 run to defeat the Highlanders at the Arena.

Prep’s 6-1 posts, Jennifer Williams and Theresa Palmer, had 14 points apiece.

The taller Bullpups forced Shadle Park outside. The Highlanders had six 3-pointers.

Gonzaga Prep 18 11 15 18 - 62

Shadle Park 3 12 11 4 - 30

GONZAGA PREP Bloom 0 0-0 0, Nelson 0 0-0 0, Green 2 0-2 4, Bradley 4 1-1 9, Machtolf 0 0-0 0, Kendrick 0 0-0 0, Thorn 3 3-6 9, Jordan 3 3-4 10, Williams 7 0-1 14, Nadeau 1 0-0 2, Palmer 7 0-0 14. Totals - 27 7-14 62.

SHADLE PARK Larkin 0 0-0 0, Caldwell 0 0-0 0, Potter 1 0-0 3, Harchuck 3 0-1 9, Stockman 1 0-0 2, Olzendam 4 0-0 10, Drake 0 0-0 0, Nelson 1 0-0 2, Etter 0 0-0 0, Blagojevic 1 2-2 4. Totals - 11 2-3 30.

3-point goals - Jordan, Potter, Harchuck 3, Olzendam 2. Total fouls - G-Prep 11, Shadle Park 13. Fouled out - Jordan, Larkin.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo