GIRLS CELEBRATE WIN OVER LAKEVIEW

The MCC Rebel Girls on Thursday played their second game of the season at home against the Lakeview Lakers. The Rebels were coming off a blowout loss to Jackson County Central on Tuesday and were hoping to pick up a win against an inexperienced Laker team who had lost to Heron Lake Okabena Fulda earlier in the week. The Rebels and the Lakers would go back and forth in a competitive game but in the end, the Rebels would be too much.

The MCC Rebels would come out strong on Thursday night taking an early lead on Lakeview. Seanna Swenson and Casey Miller would lead the attack. Swenson scored seven first-half points and had a couple of great passes to Emily Rohrer inside for a couple of big plays. The Rebels would build a 21-9 lead in the first half but the Rebels offense would go cold. The Rebels would fail to score over the final six minutes of the first half. As the Rebels offense disappeared the Lakers began to make some plays of their own. Aleiah Rosenau would score five points over the final six minutes of the half and Lakeview would chip away at the Rebel lead. MCC struggled with turnovers once again, committing 17 in the first half allowing Lakeview to catch up. The two teams would finish the first 18 minutes tied 21-21.

Both teams would play better in the second half the turnover numbers would drop for the Rebels and the number of made shots would increase for both teams. The Lakers would create some foul trouble for the Rebels which allowed them to get to the free-throw line and they would make 13 in the second half alone. The Rebels would struggle at the free-throw line but would make nine over the final 18 minutes. Where the Rebels were able to get points was in the paint. The Rebels were the bigger of the two teams and Emily Rohrer used that to her advantage on the low block. Rohrer would score 15 second-half points while doing a great job on the glass and taking away the open shots within five feet of the hoop. The Lakers would stay in the game because of the great play from Paige Viaene who would score 14 second-half points matching Rohrer almost point for point. The Rebels couldn’t pull away from the Lakers having a seven-point lead at one point but for the most part, the Rebels led by 2-4 points. The Rebels would lead by just one point when the Lakers would get an offensive rebound knocked out of bounds with three seconds to play. Lakeview’s inbound pass was tipped by the Rebels and grabbed by Abby Overman to end the game. The Rebels would win 52-51 for their first win of the year.

The Rebels finished the game with a one-point win but they gave the ball away 31 times and forced 22. The Rebels outshot the Lakers from the field 34% to 20% but the Lakers took 68 total shots compared to the Rebels 58. The Rebels dominated the glass out-rebounding rebounding Lakeview 46-30. Emily Rohrer led the Rebels with 19 points and 13 rebounds to go along with 5 steals. Casey Miller scored 10 points and dished out 6 assists and had 5 steals. Abby Overman performed well on defense with 6 rebounds and 5 steals while adding 5 points of her own. Paige Viaene finished the game with 17 points and she was the only Laker in double figures. The Rebels will play Canby at home on Monday night and will play in Hills against Hills Beaver Creek on Thursday.