Hiland girls close out Classic in the Country in style


The-Daily-Record.com

BERLIN — Any concerns Hiland coach Dave Schlabach had about a hangover from Saturday's big win over Centennial (Las Vegas) were eliminated early in the Classic in the Country finale against Jackson, as Morgan Yoder rattled home a 3-pointer on the first possession by the Hawks.

From there, they were off and running on their way to a 62-35 victory over the Polar Bears.

"The kids were a little tired. We were concerned of a let down after that big win," Schlabach said. "The kids sat around here watching games all day. This whole weekend is a great challenge, learning how to manage your time."

Schlabach pointed to plays by Kyli Horn and Kelsey Swihart that helped boost the energy to where the Hawks needed to be.

"We're playing really balanced right now, and that's what makes a good team," Schlabach said. "They double-teamed Zoe a lot, and Kyli and Kelsey really stepped up. They had opportunities and took advantage. That's what makes a good team, different kids stepping up every night. We've got eight or nine kids who can score. And they're all unselfish."

Horn went 6-of-8 from the field on her way to a team-high 15 points.

"Coach got us prepared with film, a couple shoot-arounds, and we were just real excited to play," said Horn, a Malone signee.

Hiland opened up a 12-3 lead midway through the first period when freshman Ashley Mullet came off the bench to bury a 3-pointer.

Swihart hit three shots inside and Horn dropped in a 3-pointer to give the Hawks a 19-5 lead at the end of the first quarter. The other Malone-bound Hawk finished with a dozen.

Jackson managed to go just 2-of-13 from the floor in the opening stanza.

"Our girls competed, but when they shoot the ball the way they did, it makes things pretty tough," Jackson coach Anthony Butch said. "They shot almost 50 percent from 3-point range for the game. Coach Schlabach does an incredible job. He's been doing this for a long, long time. He's one of the best for a reason."

The Polar Bears got their second triple from Alayna McMullen and a deep one from Megan Campbell, but the Hawks answered with another Yoder three and inside buckets by Swihart and Zoe Miller to open up a 30-17 lead at intermission.

Hiland came up empty on its first four possessions of the second half, and back-to-back baskets by Emma Dretke cut into the Hawks lead, pulling the Bears to within 30-21.

But that was as close as they would get.

Horn scored on a short jumper and Swihart took a charge at one end and buried a triple at the other end to extend the Hiland lead back out to 35-21.

"I just try to do whatever my team needs me to do," Swihart said.

A 3-pointer by freshman Mallory Stutzman and another by Brynn Mullet gave the Hawks a 47-29 lead after three. And they cruised to win No. 15 from there.

"These types of games are so much fun," Swihart said. "We love competing against quality opponents, and the games this weekend were against some of the best. It was a lot of fun."

Hiland made 8 of 17 3-pointers for the game, while Jackson managed 4 of 18.

Dretke paced the 8-4 Polar Bears with 12 points.

"We played Newark and we've played Hiland. Those are the teams you strive to be," Butch said. "That's why we put them both on our schedule, to challenge our kids.

"This was a great experience for our kids," the coach continued. "It felt like a district championship game. They love their basketball down here. It was a lot of fun to be here. Hopefully this pays off for us down the road."