Panthers’ pressure downs Elkhorn

Wilmot girls now 5-0 and rolling

By Jason Arndt

Staff Writer

With a high pressure defense and deep bench, Wilmot Union High School extended its girls basketball winning streak to five games, defeating visiting Southern Lakes Conference opponent Elkhorn Friday.

The Panthers 69-30 route of Elkhorn gives them a 5-0 start, its best since the 2012-13 season when they went 13-0.

Wilmot, whose bench outscored the Elks 26-8, had 10 of 12 available players score a minimum of three points, but all 12 were on the floor at least 10 minutes.

“We have consistently been playing 10 kids so far this year, and have been trying to extend that to 11 or 12 players to help keep our girls fresh the whole game,” Panthers’ coach Keiya Square said.

Junior Delaney Sjong, who had five of the Panthers’ 33 rebounds, scored a team-leading 16 points.

In addition to Sjong’s five rebounds, Wilmot received six from sophomore Morgan Zenon, who had three points and a blocked shot. Junior Olivia Klahs had five boards, eight points, three assists, two steals and a blocked shot.

Senior Sam Kirk accounted for six of Wilmot’s 25 steals, scored nine points, snagged five rebounds and contributed four assists.

The Panthers, who took a 38-16 lead into the second half, continue to score until the eight minute mark when the clock ran continuously.

“The way the game was going, it gave us more opportunities to get all our girls a good amount of playing time,” Square said.

Snagging four steals each were senior Ellie Turner (five points, three rebounds, three assists) and junior McKenna Stanek (five points, one rebound and assist).

Junior Devin Coleman, who also had five points, accumulated three steals and contributed three of Wilmot’s 16 assists.

Square attributed the Panthers’ high pressure defense and uptempo playing style for forcing turnovers.

“Every night, it could be a different player getting the steals,” Square said. “The person that gets the steal gets the credit, but the other players getting the traps and making the other team uncomfortable are the one that do most of the work.”

Wilmot’s defense held Megan Skoczylas, who led all Elks scorers, to seven points.

The Panthers controlled the paint, drawing multiple fouls, where they converted 19 of 33 shots from the free throw line.

Junior Kalyssa Koehn, who went 4-for-6 on the line, scored six points and had two steals.

Cailin McCracken, a 5-foot-11 junior, added eight points and collected three boards for Wilmot (5-0, 2-0 SLC).

Elkhorn drops to 0-6 (0-2 SLC) with the loss.


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