Lady Bulldogs Edged Out by Groton

The Lady Bulldogs lost a close game to Groton on the road on Thursday, January 18. The Lady Tigers edged them out at 42-39.

Isabella Anderson scored a game-high 13 points for Milbank. She also came away with four rebounds. Tyra Berry made 10 points. Siera Wenzl drained two three-point buckets and got two rebounds. Claire Snaza connected on two field goals and led the team in rebounds with five. Averie Schuneman added three points and one rebound. Josie Riveland made two points and four rebounds. Belle Pauli hit a free throw and snagged three defensive rebounds.

Groton’s Sydney Leicht led the Lady Tigers with 12 points. Jaedyn Penning made nine points, and Jerika Locke scored six. Rylee Dunker got four rebounds. Locke claimed three.

On paper, Milbank looked better than their opponent. Overall, the Lady Bulldogs hit 13 of 34 of their shots from the floor for 38 percent, including 29 percent from long range. Groton made 16 of 45 of their attempts for 36 percent. The Lady Tigers hit just 19 percent from beyond the arc. Milbank downed nine of their 13 free throws for nearly 70 percent.  Groton collected on  just six of 17 for 35 percent.

Midway through the third quarter, Milbank held a nine-point lead, but the Lady Tigers clawed their way back to finish the third quarter ahead at 31-29. In the final minute of the game, Groton led by seven at 42-35.  Milbank added four more points while holding Groton scoreless, but it was as close as they could get before the buzzer sounded.

Milbank–14—6—9—10—39
Groton–8—6—17—11—42

What’s next? The Lady Bulldogs host Dell Rapids in a doubleheader on Monday, January 22. (The game was rescheduled from January 13.)