By Becky Walz,
The Decorah girls’ basketball team (9-8, 5-1 NEIC) picked up a good road NEIC win Friday night but didn’t have enough in the tank to hold on in non-conference action Saturday.
Just enough
Wandering to Waukon (11-6, 3-2 NEIC) Friday night for a conference contest, the Vikings came away with a 46-39 victory.
“I am so proud of our girls. They earned this win,” said coach Blake Moen. “Playing a good Waukon team on the road always presents challenges, but we did just enough to win and solidify the conference title. Many of our players are playing in either brand new positions or brand new roles, and to see them fight for each other and continue to battle all game was really fun to see. Defense, rebounding, and huge free throws down the stretch helped us close out the game. The NEIC title was one of this team’s goals this season, and now they will have that hardware that will stay in our school forever.”
The back-and-forth ball game started with a Waukon 10-9 lead after the first frame which flipped in the Vikes’ favor at halftime 19-18. Decorah continued to lead 28-27 with eight minutes to play and did just enough to outscore the Indians 18-12 for the win.
Sydney Thompson led the way for Decorah with 13 points, three rebounds and three assists. Liz Bucksa also connected for double digits with 12 points to go with five boards and three steals. Contributing nine points apiece were Brooklyn Fromm and Grace Tangen, while Clara Hjelle pulled down a team high five caroms.
Decorah 9 10 9 18 46
Waukon 10 8 9 12 39
Scoring – Sydney Thompson 13; Liz Bucksa 12; Brooklyn Fromm 9; Grace Tangen 9; Renae Wilson 2; Clara Hjelle 1
Rebounds – Hjelle 5; Bucksa 5; Thompson 3; Wilson 3; Fromm 3; Kelby Kerndt 3; Tangen 3; Assists – Thompson 3; Hjelle 1; Wilson 1; Bucksa 1; Fromm 1; Steals – Bucksa 3; Thompson 2; Fromm 2; Wilson 1; Tangen 1; Blocks – Wilson 1
Back home Saturday
Back in action less than 24 hours after defeating Waukon, the Vikes let the win get away as Mason City (13-5), took the non-conference game 45-38.
There was no advantage for either team after the first quarter as they finished in a 13-13 knot. Decorah managed to pull ahead in the second frame 22-19 and remained on top 32-30 after the third. However, tired legs may have caught up with the Vikes as the Riverhawks outscored the home team 15-6 down the stretch for the win.
Fromm put up 14 points to lead the Vikings while Renae Wilson and Grace Tangen contributed eight apiece. Tangen also snagged 10 boards.
Mason City 13 6 11 15 45
Decorah 13 9 10 6 38
Scoring – Fromm 14; Wilson 8; Tangen 8; Bucksa 4; Thompson 2; Kerndt 2
Rebounds – Tangen 10; Bucksa 8; Wilson 7; Thompson 6; Hjelle 4; Assists – Thompson 2; Hjelle 2; Wilson 2; Bucksa 1; Fromm 1; Steals – Bucksa 2; Thompson 1; Hjelle 1; Wilson 1; Fromm 1
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