Warriors sweep home games against Canton-Galva

Written by Janae Rempel Tuesday, 29 January 2013 22:47

The Warriors swept their games against Canton-Galva Tuesday night, with the girls coming from behind to win by three, 30-27, and the boys recording a decisive 80-26 victory over the Eagles.

GIRLS – The Warriors held Canton-Galva scoreless the duration of the final quarter Tuesday to overcome a double-digit deficit for the three-point win.

Marion hung with the Eagles in the opening minutes of the first period, but a 6-0 burst by Canton-Galva left Marion trailing 10-5 at the end of the opening quarter. The Warriors battled on defense but struggled getting inside looks at the basket. Erin Meierhoff gave Marion it’s first points of the second quarter with a three-point basket to narrow the gap to four, 8-12, at 7:28. Three minutes passed before Marion scored again, this time on two Kaelyn Thierolf free-throws. The teams traded scores, but the Eagles used a 5-0 run to push their lead to 21-12 with under one minute to play in the half. Megan Richmond scored with four seconds left, but the Warriors trailed 21-14 at the break.

The Eagles struck first after intermission, but Thierolf answered from the charity stripe at 6:13 for a 23-16 Eagle margin. However, the Eagles surged after a Warrior turnover for a double-digit, 27-16, lead with 5:17 remaining in the third quarter. It would be Canton-Galva’s final points of the night, however, as a switch to zone defense by the Warriors helped to shut down the Eagle attack inside. Marion burst to the finish with 14 unanswered points.

Katey Ehrlich stepped up for the Warriors in the second half, driving inside and drawing fouls to narrow the Eagles’ lead to 27-20 with 2:47 left in the third. Canton-Galva shots refused to fall, and Marion eliminated second chance baskets by pulling down rebounds. Hess scored at 1:18, bringing the Warriors within five, 27-22, to end the third quarter.

Ehrlich scored on a second chance basket with 5:12 left in the game, and Kirsten Hansen scored 20 seconds later after an Eagle turnover to narrow the gap to one, 27-26. Ehrlich free throws at 3:20 put the Warriors in the lead for good, 28-27, with 3:20 left in the game. Turnovers and missed shots plagued both teams, and Richmond went to the line with 3 seconds remaining to score the Warriors’ final two points.

Ehrlich led the Warriors with eight total points.

BOYS – Marion controlled Tuesday’s game from the start, exploding to a 17-0 lead thanks to a stifling Warrior defense taking advantage of poor Canton-Galva ball-handling. The Eagles got on the board with a basket at 3:40, but Marion burst to a 26-8 lead to end the opening quarter. Jordan Hett contributed six consecutive points off steals and boasted 10 points by the end of the first period.

The Warriors continued to pound away in the second quarter, nearly doubling their score for a 51-14 halftime advantage. Jacob Harper scored 15 points in the quarter on his way to a game-high 21 points. The Warriors cleared the bench in the third quarter, outscoring Canton-Galva 15-8 to take a 66-22 lead into the final period. With a running clock in place, Marion surged to the 54-point victory.

Four Warriors scored in double digits. Harper led the Marion attack with 21 points, followed by Hett with 16, Timothy Knolla with 12 and Zac Robson with 11.