After a 12 day break, the Lady Lions were able to finally play another game.  The only bad part was that it was against the same team that they had lost to in the last game, the Sacred Heart Knights. 

Minneapolisstarted slow, but by the end of the first had built an 11-7 lead.  Solid defense from both teams, along with errant passes, led to many turnovers and missed shots.  Fortunately for the Lady Lions, they were able to take a 20-12 lead into the locker-room.  “I told the girls at half-time that the third quarter was when they made their run in the last game.  We must match their intensity and stop it before they score too many in a row,”  stated Coach Darrow.

Sacred Heart came out and tried several times to make a run on the Lady Lions, but each and every time, Minneapolis answered with buckets of their own.  Early in the fourth the Lady Lions took a 12 point lead, only to have it cut to three with less than two minutes to play.  Minneapolis did not fold but extended it back to eight with under 10 seconds in the game.  The Lady Lions won 40-35.  “Defensively we played excellent.  We were flying around the floor and forced several turn-overs and contested most shots,”  commented Coach Darrow.

The Thursday game was a make-up game against the Ellsworth Lady Bearcats at Ellsworth.  Minneapolis jumped all over the Lady Bearcats early and never trailed in the game.  “We did not shoot the ball very well against Ellsworth.  We had open shots and did not convert.  One thing we must do a better job of in practice is shooting at game speed, “ stated Coach Darrow.

By the end of the first quarter, the Lady Lions had built a 15-6 lead and extended it to 26-15 by half-time.  The third quarter was another good one for Minneapolis, outscoring Ellsworth 15-8 to take a commanding 41-23 lead.  The fourth quarter saw many different combinations of players by Minneapolis and the Lady Lions ended with a 45-29 victory.

“I am very happy where we are at Christmas Break.  4-1 overall and 3-0 in League is a greatstart for the girls.  We still have a lot of work to do, but I am very proud of what these girls have accomplished up to this point,” commented Coach Darrow.

 Stats:               Points        Rebounds        Steals          Assists

 Fulton, C.        12                     5                  2                5

Shoemaker, S.   22                     9                10                8

Darrow, C.         6                    11                 6                6         

Shoemaker, J.   26                    14                 3                8

Devries, J.          8                      5                 4                1

Catron, M.          7                      9                 4                2

Buckles, A.         1                      3                  1                     

Sharp, S.            4                      1