Ladies light up the Trailblazers

Sonja Karp
NLJ Sports Reporter
 
Revenge is sweet, but it could have been sweeter for the Lady Dogies last Friday. After losing to the Lady Trailblazers by four points early in January, head coach Chad Ostenson’s crew had been looking forward to a rematch for a month, but when they arrived in Torrington it wasn’t quite what they expected.
Torrington’s leading scorer and best player, Reece Halley, was sidelined for the weekend with a sprained ankle, so the 17-point trouncing the Lady Dogies slapped on the ‘Blazers lacked the satisfaction it might have otherwise provided.
“We were all a little disappointed that Reece wasn’t playing,” Ostenson admitted. “It would have been nice to beat them with her on the floor to quiet any doubters.”
Undoubtedly, Torrington missed Halley’s 17.5 points and 10.1 rebounds which she averages per game, however the Lady Dogies were ready for her and put together a pretty complete game on both ends of the court. 
“Our defense looked really good,” Ostenson began. “We out-rebounded them by four, which is pretty good considering they are the top rebounding team in the state for 3A.
The Lady Dogies got off to a brisk start with an early bucket from beyond the arc by Mercedes Voelker, and they never looked back. The squad led at every quarter break, and built a 13-point lead at the half with a blistering offensive charge in the second quarter where they racked up 23 to Torrington’s 16. 
Hunter McFarland and MacKenzie Conzelman had a hand in that run as they each provided an offensive spark which got the team’s motor running. The ‘Blazers were giving McFarland quite a bit of room as they were sagging and helping on defense, so she made them pay by hitting two three-pointers and attacking the rim to score as well.
Conzelman had a little more defensive attention paid to her, but with her quick release, drained three from beyond the arc by the end of the contest.
“It’s nice to have a few more weapons on the floor and that’s what we’re capable of doing most of the time,” Ostenson grinned. “When players who may not show stats on the weekly sheets are able to drop double figures, that keeps other teams a little more honest in their defensive strategy.”
Tiernan Stanton, with her 6-foot, two-inch frame and volleyball blocking skills, was a thorn in the Torrington’s side when it came to their shot attempts in the paint. The sophomore ended the night with four rejections and put up a daunting wall against countless other attempts, forcing players to change their shots to try to avoid the block.
Other than a lull in the third quarter where the ‘Blazers went on a little run, Newcastle never gave up their advantage, and someone inevitably stepped up to squash any momentum Torrington had gained.
“You never know when you’re playing them if a 10- or even 20-point lead will be good enough,” Ostenson admitted. “We’ve been down there with a 20-point lead and then didn’t get out of it with a win. It’s never safe, and you can’t be comfortable until it’s all said and done.”
When that final buzzer sounded, Newcastle held a 57-40 point advantage with eight players contributing to the final score. Jaylen Ostenson finished with 16, while McFarland and Conzelman put up 11 and 10 respectively. From there, Stanton added seven, Shelby Tidyman and Claire Beastrom each had four, Voelker finished with just the one three-pointer, and Shawnee Miles chipped in two.
The ladies’ contest against 2A Big Horn on Saturday was cancelled due to inclement weather, so the squad got an extra day to rest before preparing for their rematch against the Lady Broncs in Burns Friday. Newcastle lost to the southeast squad by five in their second game of the season back in December, so they will be looking to even the score.
“We need to go back and play them again and see how we come out of it,” Ostenson nodded. “They are playing pretty good right now so it should be a good one.”