In two consecutive state tournament appearances, Remsen St. Mary’s girls basketball advances to the semifinal round. This year, the third-ranked Hawks took down sixth-ranked Martensdale-St. Marys 52-33 in the quarterfinal round.
It was a hard-fought struggle in the first quarter for both teams, but Remsen St. Mary’s faced the worst of it. The Hawks shot an ice-cold 2-11 from the field and turned the ball over eight times. Remsen St. Mary’s head coach Scott Willman says the Hawks were not playing their game in the early part of the game.
Carmindee Ricke finished with 13 points to lead the Hawks offensively. She says getting the defense back on track first set up the rest of the game for success.
Things quickly got back on the right track with the Hawks starting the second quarter on a 9-0 run that gave them the lead they would not relinquish. Claire Schroeder became the difference-maker for the Hawks getting five of her 11 points in the second quarter. Coach Willman says her movement in the post gave her good looks.
Schroeder says she was able to take advantage of mismatches in the post that allowed her scoring opportunities.
The Hawks finished with three players scoring in double figures and outscoring the Blue Devils 30-17 in the second half. One of those players was Whitney Jensen with 10 points. After dealing with three fouls in the first half, Jensen says she was not worried knowing that her teammates would help out in the scoring department.
As the Hawks were pulling away, they did a much better job of taking care of the ball. After eight turnovers in the first quarter, the Hawks gave the ball away just five times in the final three quarters. Coach Willman says the Hawks became more consistent as the game went along.
While the Hawks were taking care of the ball, the Blue Devils were giving the ball away. Ricke finished with five steals on defense and says there is no better feeling than impacting the game on defense.
The Hawks up their record to 24-0 on the season and advance to a state semifinal on Friday against perennial power Newell-Fonda. Schroeder and the seniors are in a precarious spot where any game could be their last. She says that means they are determined to making sure they leave everything on the floor.
Coach Willman says Newell-Fonda’s program is one that everyone else strives to match.
The Hawks and Mustangs will tip off at 3:15 PM on Friday afternoon. KLEM Radio will have the live coverage from Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines with coverage beginning at 3:00 PM.
