Lady Broncos split league games in the new year

After taking a break from games for a week, the Lind-Ritzville/ Sprague Lady Broncos returned to the hardwood to face opponents from the other half of the league.

On Friday, Jan. 2, they traveled to Dayton to face the Lady Bulldogs.

After battling out the game for the first three quarters, the Lady Broncos had a nine-point advantage over their opponent. The fourth quarter proved to be the most difficult.

Head Coach John Galbreath said the effort from the team dwindled and by the fourth quarter, the Lady Broncos were no longer executing as they had been.

They lost to Dayton by three points, 49-46, after allowing the Lady Bulldogs to close the gap.

In the first quarter the Lady Broncos came out strong. They had some early trouble with eight fouls being called against them. After switching to zone defense, they only received one foul call in the second quarter.

Galbreath said the girls played well and kept their composure even with the first half difficulties.

“I thought going into halftime, considering how we started in foul trouble, that we were in pretty good shape,” Galbreath explained.

Galbreath attributed the fourth quarter slip to a lack of effort by the team.

In the game, Peyton Curtis capped the Lady Broncos’ scoring efforts with 12 points. She provided a great threat for the Broncos from the three-point line against the zone defense of Dayton. Tessa Jantz also led in scoring with 10 points.

On Saturday the Lady Broncos hosted the Kettle Falls Lady Bulldogs. Right from the start they took control of the game, leading Kettle Falls 19-9 at the conclusion of the first quarter.

The second quarter proved to be a struggle against Kettle Falls.

“It’s frustrating to have those large swings in a game,” Galbreath said.

In the second half the Lady Broncos’ intensity increased, Galbreath said, and fought hard. They held Kettle Falls’ scoring to eight points in the third quarter and only allowed seven points in the fourth quarter.

“We came out and took care of business in the second half,” Galbreath explained.

On offense the Lady Broncos recorded 18 points in each quarter and defeated Kettle Falls 66-41.

Jenna Bennett recorded 21 points against the Lady Bulldogs while Curtis put up 13 points. Tommi Swannack and Jantz recorded 11 points each to help earn the win.

Mallory Kessler, Madison Harder, Bennett and Jantz pulled in eight rebounds each for the team with Swanack grabbing another seven. Galbreath said the rebounding by the girls during the Kettle Falls game was much improved over the previous night.

“We got it going in the second half,” Galbreath explained. “And that’s how we should be playing throughout the whole game.”

The Lady Broncos traveled to face the Northwest Christian Lady Crusaders on Tuesday, Jan. 6.

Galbreath expected the Lady Crusaders would be a tough opponent but if the LRS team was able to overcome the mental hurdles and execute they would be fine.

After Tuesday’s game the Lady Broncos travel to Davenport before hosting Springdale on Saturday.

Galbreath said he is a little anxious for the Davenport game. The Lady Gorillas have several players who participate in club basketball, which will make them a tough opponent.

The Lady Broncos cannot relax on Saturday either. Even though Springdale is not the strongest opponent in the league, Galbreath said they have the ability to compete with any team in the league right now.

Tip-off for the Lady Broncos’ game on Saturday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. in Gilson Gymnasium.