Comeback kids: CG-Belgium girls pull out win

A little perseverance and a lot of hustle helped the Cedar Grove-Belgium High School girls’ basketball team top Reedsville at home last Saturday, 46-44.

The Rockets were down six at halftime and by as many as 14 in the second half before they mounted a comeback for the season’s first victory.

“We switched to a press to help us get going. We were able to get some baskets out of it,” coach Jason Jones said.

The Rockets took their first lead of the game with about a minute left and had the edge up to three at one point.

Up two in the waning seconds, a Panther ran down the right sideline and threw up a Hail Mary that sailed out of bounds at the buzzer. The Rockets had come all the way back.

“I was proud of our girls. They never quit, kept fighting, kept hustling and scrapping for everything they could,” Jones said.

Guard Alyssa Mentink had 15 points on 6-for-16 shooting. She went 3-for-3 on free throws. Guard Alexis Bahr had 13 points on 5-for-12 shooting. She was 3-for-4 at the free throw line and grabbed nine rebounds.
Jessica Sutryk had eight points and hit two big three-pointers down the stretch, Jones said. He also praised Cheyenne Simonet and Ellie Dirkse for their pressure defense that led to steals. The Rockets had 10 in the game.

Brooke Braga and Simonet each had five rebounds, and Laura Jerabek and Sutryk each had four.

The Rockets made 71% of their free throws in the second half, Jones said.

Panther Morgan Taddy had 16 points.

On Dec. 1, the Rockets lost at Random Lake, 52-30.

“They’ve got a good group of seniors. They’re pretty tough, very aggressive,” Jones said.

Mentink had 15 points and five steals. Bahr had seven rebounds.

The Rams held the Rockets to 11-for-44 (25%) shooting from the field. The Rams shot 25-for-58 (43%).

Ram senior McKenna Armstrong went 7-for-10 shooting and led eight Ram scorers with 15 points. Becca Arendt had nine points, and Ashley Gruman had eight steals.

Jones said he was encouraged by the second-half effort, a 26-20 Rams’ edge.

The Rockets, 1-2 in the Big East Conference, were to host Random Lake Tuesday, host defending conference champ Oostburg on Friday and play at Manitowoc Lutheran on Tuesday, Dec. 15.