The Adrian/Ellsworth Girls Basketball team defeated the HLO/F Coyotes in a Super Saturday match-up with a final score of 57-24. The Dragons advance to the final four in the sub-section 3A play facing the South West Christian Eagles on Monday, February 24, in Worthington. The Dragons were seeded #3 coming into Super Saturday, giving them the home court advantage in the match-up, something that hasn’t happened for either Adrian or Ellsworth girls basketball in quite some time.
Right from the tip off the girls were determined to play good, clean basketball with minimal errors while keeping poise and composure. The Dragons wanted to be in the driver’s seat when it came to controlling the game, and that’s exactly what they did. Straight from the tip off that Bailey Lonneman put into the hands of Moriah Bullerman, the Dragons set up their offense and found Lonneman wide open behind the arch, for a nice 3 to start the game. With a quick stop on the defensive end, the Dragons got the ball back quickly and found Jayden Zebe open behind the arch again and she cashed in another 3 for the Dragons, putting the team up by 6 within 30 seconds of the game’s start. The Dragons never gave up the lead the entire game and let their defense do the talking.
The Dragons applied a full court pressure that the Coyotes struggled to break. Due to this defensive move, the Dragons were able to force the Coyotes to committing 18 turnovers, allowing the Dragons to capture 15 steals. The Dragons aggressive defense also made it hard for the Coyotes to get a good look at their basket. HLO/F put up only 36 shots throughout game, completing 8 of those 36 shots.
For the Dragons it was a true team effort with many individual highlights. Ashlyn Meester accomplished 12 points for the team, but the most impressive part for Meetser was her ability to prevent being out-hustled or beat on the defensive end. Meester grabbed four steals for the team and played a big role in the press working as well as it did. Bailey Lonneman had a solid game with a respectful 12 points for the Dragons. Jayden Zebe had an impressive night defensively, capturing four steals, along with seven rebounds, and putting up seven points. Morgan Dreesen was also a huge factor in the press/defense working as well as it did. Dreesen grabbed three steals and shot 50% for the night. The small but mighty Moriah Bullerman pulled down seven rebounds and dished out three assists. Kallie Chapa ripped down five offensive boards for the Dragons and passed out two assists to her teammates while putting up five points. Sophomore, Julia Bullerman pulled down six rebounds for the team and shot 67%. Jennifer Preuss dished out three timely assists.
The team advanced in playoffs to the final four, playing in Worthington on Monday, February 24th. They faced the 2nd seed SWC. The Dragons fell to SWC, see next weeks Nobles County Review for the full story.
