Marshfield girls basketball team’s comeback falls short in loss to La Crosse Central

Marshfield's Kailey Hubler drives inside for a hoop during the Tigers' loss to La Crosse Central on Tuesday at The Boson Company Fieldhouse at Marshfield High School. (Photo by Paul Lecker/MarshfieldAreaSports.com)
Marshfield’s Kailey Hubler drives inside for a hoop during the Tigers’ loss to La Crosse Central on Tuesday at The Boson Company Fieldhouse at Marshfield High School. (Photo by Paul Lecker/MarshfieldAreaSports.com)

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By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com

MARSHFIELD – A lackluster start turned into a spirited comeback attempt, but in the end the Marshfield girls basketball team fell short, dropping a nonconference game to La Crosse Central 50-44 on Tuesday night at The Boson Company Fieldhouse at Marshfield High School.

The Tigers fall to 0-2, while Central improves to 4-1.

Marshfield made just 2 of 19 shots from the field and committed 10 turnovers in the first half. Despite that, the Tigers did make 11 of 14 shots from the free throw line to stay within striking distance and trailed 25-16 at halftime.

Central went up by as much as 13, leading 33-20 after a basket by Shainne Fair following three straight turnovers by the Tigers.

Marshfield chipped away, scoring on five straight possessions. The 11-4 run, which included two breakaway layups by Darian Molter and a 3-pointer from Ellie Kummer, cut the Tigers’ deficit to 37-31 heading into the fourth quarter.

“We started playing hard,” Marshfield coach Heidi Michaelis said. “It’s as simple as that. It’s playing with a little bit of heart as opposed to no heart. They have to figure out how badly they want to get better and how badly they want to play hard.

“Somehow, they have to figure out that playing hard doesn’t just happen occasionally, it’s got to be all the time. I’m disappointed. Whether it’s early (in the season) or not, there are things that you can always take care of and right now, they aren’t doing that.”

The Tigers started the fourth quarter on an 8-4 run to get to within two points of the lead.

Caitlin Michaelis had a 3-pointer and a steal and layup, and Ellie Fehrenbach scored off an offensive rebound to make it 41-39 with 5:12 to go.

Marshfield made 7 of 11 shots during the 19-8 run, but as hot as the Tigers were, they reverted back to the way played in the first half during the final 5 minutes.

Marshfield missed 10 of its final 11 shot attempts. The Tigers had five possessions with the score at 41-39, but missed six shots and turned the ball over twice, unable to get back to even.

Central made just 7 of 14 free throws over the final 2:45, but it was enough as the Tigers’ only points came on a 3-pointer by McKayla Scheuer and two free throws by Kummer.

“We knew it was a 1-3-1 (zone) coming in, we practiced against it, and we saw bad passing last night in practice,” Heidi Michaelis said. “It’s a simple saying, ‘You play the way you practice,’ and they did. It’s too early in the season to throw in the towel. They just have to learn from their mistakes and they have to work to be better at it.”

Michaelis had 13 points and nine rebounds to lead the Tigers.

Brittany Baldwin topped Central with 15 points.

Marshfield plays at Stevens Point on Friday as part of a girls-boys doubleheader. The girls game starts at 6 p.m., with the boys to follow at 7:45 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on WDLB-AM 1450 and online at wdlbwosq.com.

Red Raiders 50, Tigers 44
La Crosse Central 11 14 12 13 – 50
Marshfield 8 8 15 13 – 44
LA CROSSE CENTRAL (50):
Brooke Baldwin 2-7 0-0 4, Brittany Baldwin 6-12 3-11 15, Katlyn Roesch 1-3 3-4 5, Katie Hanson 4-7 4-6 12, Erin Hennessy 1-3 2-2 4, Shianne Fair 2-4 0-0 4, Jenna Kramer 2-6 0-0 6, Abby Athnos 0-0 0-0 0. FG: 18-42. FT: 12-23. 3-pointers: 2-14 (Kramer 2-6, Hennessy 0-2, Roesch 0-2, Bri. Baldwin 0-2, Bro. Baldwin 0-2). Rebounds: 22 (Bri. Baldwin 4, Kramer 4). Turnovers: 17. Fouls: 16. Fouled out: Bro. Baldwin. Record: 4-1.
MARSHFIELD (44): McKayla Scheuer 2-4 0-0 5, Caitlin Michaelis 3-13 5-6 13, Darian Molter 2-8 3-4 7, Natalie Zuelke 0-1 0-0 0, Lauren Gilbertson 0-0 0-0 0, Martha Kupfer 0-0 1-2 1, Ellie Kummer 2-8 4-4 9, Ellie Fehrenbach 1-5 0-1 2, Kailey Huber 1-4 5-6 7. FG: 11-43. FT: 18-23. 3-pointers: 4-21 (Michaelis 2-10, Scheuer 1-2, Kummer 1-5, Molter 0-4). Rebounds: 32 (Michaelis 9, Fehrenbach 8). Turnovers: 21. Fouls: 19. Fouled out: none.