HUMBOLDT — Humboldt High’s girls clamped down on defense Thursday, limiting Crest High to two points in the first quarter and eight points at halftime.
Meanwhile, the Lady Cubs were able to limit their turnovers to pull away for a 51-32 victory.
The win, coming in the second round of Humboldt’s preseason tournament, lifts the Lady Cubs to 1-2 on the season. Crest drops to 0-3.
Both teams wrapped up tournament action Friday, but those games were not completed until after deadline. (Check www.iolaregister.com or Monday’s Register for details.)
“We talked about controlling turnovers,” Humboldt head coach Aubrey Jones said. “I think we got the first couple of game jitters out of the way. The girls are getting more accustomed to the speed.”
Humboldt led by as many as 27 in the third quarter before foul trouble reared its ugly head. Both Kennisyn Hottenstein and Karsyn Haviland went to the bench with four fouls in the period for Humboldt.
Crest took advantage with McKenna Hammond scoring five points in the quarter and Kayla Hermreck four as the Lady Lancers put forth a nice scoring flurry to end the quarter.
“We kept after it, but we started slower than we would have liked,” said Crest assistant coach Danelle McGhee, sitting in for head coach Caleb Powelson, who missed his second straight game because of illness.
Humboldt kept the surging Lady Lancers at bay down the stretch by hitting 8 of 11 free throws in the period.
Haviland led Humboldt with 14 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter. Karley Wools added 12, eight coming in the final frame.
“Really, all the girls played well,” Jones said. “They’re really good about sharing the ball, acknowledging each other, making the extra pass. They’re great with how well they get along. The fouls slowed us down a little bit. We’re going to build on that one.”
Hammond wound up with 11 points to pace Crest. Hermreck followed with 10.
Humboldt resumes play at home Tuesday against Marmaton Valley. The Lancers are idle until after the Christmas break. Their next game is set for Jan. 4 at Jayhawk-Linn.
Crest (2-6-11-13—32) (FG/3pt-FT-F-TP): McGhee 1-1-2-3, Beckmon 1-0-2-2, Coleman 0-0-1-0, Boots 0-2-2-2, Hermreck 5-0-3-10, Godderz 2-0-2-4, Hammond 4-3-2-11. TOTALS: 13-6-14-32.
