Lady Broncos trample season opening opponents

The Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Lady Broncos took to the court for their first game of the season on Saturday, Dec. 6, against Columbia-Burbank in a game where they showcased the abilities of the relatively young team.

After a slow start the Lady Broncos would take the game 60-53 over the Lady Coyotes.

“They had their first game the night before so I kind of figured they’d be a little more polished than we were and it showed, “ head coach John Galbreath explained. “We had some good early looks that just didn’t fall and they didn’t get as many looks but they somehow were up 7-2, from the mere fact that the couple looks that they did get they scored.”

Mallory Kessler would help set the pace for the start of the game, Galbreath said. With all of her points scored in the first half, she kept the team in the game while they found their footing.

At the end of the first quarter the Lady Broncos would pull ahead of the Coyotes by two points and at halftime they would be up 32-26.

Fouls would be a factor in the game for the Lady Broncos as the Lady Coyotes sent the team to the line early. Jenna Bennett would shoot 31 free throws during the game.

“The officials have a different point of emphasis every year, and every year they tend to focus on something,” Galbreath explained, “and this year it was on the hand checking and the two hands on a person and how long you keep a hand on.”

Conversely the Lady Broncos were able to play defense without drawing as many fouls as Columbia-Burbank.

“I was glad that we were able to play defense for the most part without using our hands and doing our best just using our feet,” Galbreath said. “If we can continue to do that I think we’re gonna be great.”

The Lady Coyotes rallied in the third quarter and closed the LRS lead to 43-39.

“I was a little disappointed but I thought our composure was good, we came back and got the lead right back and we were able to really build back off that lead again,” Galbreath said.

Mid-way through the fourth quarter Galbreath switched the defense from man into a 2-3 zone. He only planned to do this for a few possessions to mix up the defensive look but kept it for an extended period of time.

The different defense threw the Lady Coyotes rhythm off for the rest of the game.

The Lady Broncos finished the game seven points ahead of their opponent, with all members of the team contributing significantly to their success.

“Overall it was a great team effort and I think it showed, I didn’t see a lot of selfishness that night. I saw a lot of teamwork, a lot of people playing together,” Galbreath said.

In addition to her 12 points Kessler racked up six steals during the night. Tessa Jantz contributed 13 points and 12 rebounds. Despite not playing as much, Holly Nygren caused problems for the Columbia-Burbank offense and had a major steal and lay-in to keep the momentum in favor of LRS.

After defeating the Coyotes the girls prepared to face the Medical Lake Cardinals. Medical Lake played against Northwest Christian with the Lady Crusaders coming out on top.

“I’d assume that we could compete with Medical Lake,” Galbreath said

The girls would take the victory over the Cardinals on Tuesday night 57-43 and take on the Odessa-Harrington Titans on Friday before facing their first league opponent, Liberty, on Saturday.

“You want to get some good momentum tomorrow night against them [Medical Lake] and then against Odessa-Harrington on Friday and then for our first league game against Liberty on Saturday we want to be playing good basketball,” Galbreath explained.

“These games are important for us to get the rhythm and an identity and understand what gives us productivity. What makes us good and what doesn’t.”

The Lady Broncos cannot take the Lancers lightly even if they may not be the top ranked team in the league.

“I think they can beat, really any team on any given night,” Galbreath explained.

He said the Lancers are well coached and make good adjustments during the game so the Bronco girls need to come ready to play on Saturday.

LRS hosts Liberty in Ritzville at 6 p.m. Dec. 13.