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Otters take inside track vs. Tech, win 50-42
Published 10:54am Friday, January 25, 2013The Fergus Falls girls basketball team traveled to St. Cloud to take on the Tech Tigers Thursday night, and as they always do before they leave, they check the roster and the bus to ensure everyone got on.
Luckily they made sure Hanna Swenson and Anna Monke got on the bus, as the Otters pounded it inside to them all night and they responded with 31 of the Otters’ points in a 50-42 win.
Hanna Swenson hit 7 of 9 from the floor and 6 of 7 from the charity stripe to lead all scorers with 20 points. She also had 10 rebounds to lead the team and complete a double-double night. Anna Monke scored 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds to complete the inside domination for the Otters.
Some fans were overheard to say the defensive game seemed slightly painful, like going to the dentist. But in defense of dentists that’s a good thing, because both teams played the type of strong D you need to win the tough games, and the Otter defense made the difference in this tough game. And just like going to the dentist where you leave with nice, shiny and clean teeth, the Otters left St. Cloud with a nice, shiny and clean 15-0 record.
For the first time all season, the Otters didn’t make a three point shot in the game. Credit goes to Tech’s full court man-to-man pressure defense all game, with maybe a little dark lighting in the gym thrown in. The Tech defense had the Otter offense somewhat out of sorts, but eventually the inside game of the Otters carried the day. Fergus Falls ended up shooting 38 percent from the floor on the night, 11 percent below their season’s average.
Tech shot 36 percent from the floor. Shooting percentage, free throws and turnovers were almost even for both teams, so the final difference in the game was the Otters out-rebounding Tech 32 to 19, giving the Otters the extra possessions to score the points for the margin of victory.
“There are nights when the ball doesn’t go through the basket for you, and defense has to carry the day,” commented Otter coach Brad Strand. “Along with that, your senior leadership has to step up and Hanna Swenson certainly did that for us tonight, both on the offensive and defensive end with her double-double. We rebounded the ball well tonight which became a major factor in the win.”
In the JV game, the Otters had their full team for the first time this year after some early injury problems and illnesses, and the team responded in style, running away with a 46-6 victory. Strong defense created 36 Tech turnovers, many converted into offensive points on the other end. Ashley Reinertson led the Otters with a double-double 10 points and 10 boards. Brooklyn Seland led the scoring with 11 points and Anna Norgard added nine.
The ninth grade team had trouble scoring early, falling behind 21-7 before coming back to within six points, but ended up dropping the game to Tech 45-37.
Fergus Falls is now 15-0 on the year, 10-0 in the Central Lakes Conference. They have another tough CLC game on the road Saturday when they take on an improved Willmar team in a 3 p.m. game.
FERGUS FALLS (50) – H. Swenson 20, A. Monke 11, B. Strand 10, D. Smith 6, B. Rasmusson 2, K. Traiser 1.
ST. CLOUD TECH (42) – K. Burroughs 14, A. Soenneker 9, L. Wurm 7, K. Angell 5, J. Kedrowski 3, T. Brown 2, S. Boettcher 2.
