Lady Trojans getting hot at the right time

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Posted 2/1/18

It took some time for Mendota to get things in gear, but once it did it was no match for Serena in a 54-28 nonconference win on Jan. 23 at the MHS gym.

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Lady Trojans getting hot at the right time

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Mendota’s Brittany Menzel protects the ball from the swipe attempt of Winnebago’s Tiana Bielskis on Jan. 27 at the MHS gym. (Reporter photo)

It took some time for Mendota to get things in gear, but once it did it was no match for Serena in a 54-28 nonconference win on Jan. 23 at the MHS gym.

Serena held a 12-11 lead after the opening period thanks to four three-point field goals from Madison Holdiman. But Mendota fought back to grab a 25-18 halftime lead, and then took control in the second half.

“We woke up in the third quarter and pulled away,” said MHS coach John Hansen. “We dominated the boards in the second half and shot the ball well overall.”

The Lady Trojans connected on 55 percent of their field goal attempts and had 36 rebounds.

Amellia Bromenschenkel led the team in scoring with 15 points and in rebounding with nine. Alex Barrera supplied 12 points, while Abby Phalen collected seven rebounds.

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Mendota dominated North Boone from the opening tip and cruised to a 62-40 victory in a Big Northern Conference encounter on Jan. 25 at Poplar Grove.

The Lady Trojans sprinted out to a 15-8 lead after the first eight-minute session and continued to build on their cushion in the second period, taking a 29-16 advantage to intermission.

“Our offense was sharp all night,” said Hansen. “We dominated the glass for the second straight game. It was an all-around great game.”

Barrera pumped in 16 points to top the scoring chart, while Bromenschenkel and Larkin O’Donnell added 12 and 10 tallies, respectively. Phalen led with six rebounds.

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The Lady Trojans proved they can play with the top teams in the conference after knocking off Winnebago, 52-46, on Jan. 27 at the MHS gym.

Mendota, which held a narrow 27-25 halftime margin, surrendered the lead to Winnebago, 34-33, with just under three minutes left in the third quarter. But the Lady Trojans quickly regained the advantage for good when Bromenschenkel and Phalen closed out the frame with baskets, and Bromenschenkel opened the fourth with a hoop off of a nifty feed from Phalen Hessenberger to make it 39-34.

Winnebago got as close as one (43-42) with just over two minutes left, but Mendota scored nine of the final 13 points to secure the win.

“Our offense was better than the scorebook showed and we played great on defense 98 percent of the game and dominated the glass,” noted Hansen.

Bromenschenkel paced the attack with 20 points, 12 rebounds and five steals. Barrera and Brittany Menzel dropped in nine points apiece, while Phalen seized nine rebounds.

Mendota improved to 13-10 overall and 4-4 in the conference.