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ENLARGE
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — The Incline girls caught fire from beyond the three-point arc to take it to the Wolverines in the second quarter Friday. But the larger Wolverines took advantage of their size and skill after the half to cruise to a 57-34 Mount Rose League win on Incline's senior farewell.
“That was disappointing,” said Incline head coach Wayne Nash. “I thought we had a shot at them. I thought we were the only team in the league with the talent to stay with them.”
The Highlanders did manage to stay with the league-leading Wolverines through one half, as they fought back from a 16-6 deficit at the end of the first quarter to trail by only one point, 24-23, entering the midway point. Incline hit five three-pointers in the quarter, with Molly Franklin accounting for three of them and Caroline May two.
May's second three of the quarter gave Incline a brief lead at 23-22, before Sydnie English put Truckee back in front with an offensive rebound putback.
Sophomore forward Kerrie Tonking scored on a nifty post move to open the third quarter to give the lead back to Incline for the final time, at 25-24. Truckee senior center Aleigh Krug then scored the next four points as the Wolverines began to cause Incline problems in the backcourt with a full-court press.
“Incline shot the lights out in the first half. Then I thought we calmed down,” said Truckee head coach Geoff Stephens. “Once we started pressuring again, we got back into our comfort zone. When the girls believe in themselves, it's hard to stop them.”
Truckee senior Krysta Murphy drained a three-ball and English scored in transition after beating Incline's press, and suddenly the Wolverines' lead had grown to 32-25. After an outside make by Elise Nelson halted the 9-0 run, Krug went on to score four more consecutive points as part of an 8-2 Truckee run to end the quarter up 41-30.
“Their big girl (Krug) didn't really hurt us. What hurt us was the rest of the team,” Nash said. “We were not doing the things we have been doing. I don't think we got to the free-throw line much at all because of their size. We just didn't take it inside much.”
The Wolverines kept up the pressure in the fourth, scoring the first 13 points of the quarter before Tori O'Connor converted a fast-break layup. The Highlanders managed only one more basket as Truckee coasted to the win.
“The closer you get to a perfect season, the tougher it gets,” said Stephens, whose Wolverines completed the Mount Rose League sweep with the win, at 10-0. “It's hard to win that last game. I'm very proud of them.”
Incline, which has one more game in the regular season, is now 6-3 in league.
Murphy led all scorers with 19 points, including seven in the first quarter, while Krug finished with 17. Franklin scored nine points to lead the Highlanders as O'Connor and Tonking each had eight.
“That was disappointing,” said Incline head coach Wayne Nash. “I thought we had a shot at them. I thought we were the only team in the league with the talent to stay with them.”
The Highlanders did manage to stay with the league-leading Wolverines through one half, as they fought back from a 16-6 deficit at the end of the first quarter to trail by only one point, 24-23, entering the midway point. Incline hit five three-pointers in the quarter, with Molly Franklin accounting for three of them and Caroline May two.
May's second three of the quarter gave Incline a brief lead at 23-22, before Sydnie English put Truckee back in front with an offensive rebound putback.
Sophomore forward Kerrie Tonking scored on a nifty post move to open the third quarter to give the lead back to Incline for the final time, at 25-24. Truckee senior center Aleigh Krug then scored the next four points as the Wolverines began to cause Incline problems in the backcourt with a full-court press.
“Incline shot the lights out in the first half. Then I thought we calmed down,” said Truckee head coach Geoff Stephens. “Once we started pressuring again, we got back into our comfort zone. When the girls believe in themselves, it's hard to stop them.”
Truckee senior Krysta Murphy drained a three-ball and English scored in transition after beating Incline's press, and suddenly the Wolverines' lead had grown to 32-25. After an outside make by Elise Nelson halted the 9-0 run, Krug went on to score four more consecutive points as part of an 8-2 Truckee run to end the quarter up 41-30.
“Their big girl (Krug) didn't really hurt us. What hurt us was the rest of the team,” Nash said. “We were not doing the things we have been doing. I don't think we got to the free-throw line much at all because of their size. We just didn't take it inside much.”
The Wolverines kept up the pressure in the fourth, scoring the first 13 points of the quarter before Tori O'Connor converted a fast-break layup. The Highlanders managed only one more basket as Truckee coasted to the win.
“The closer you get to a perfect season, the tougher it gets,” said Stephens, whose Wolverines completed the Mount Rose League sweep with the win, at 10-0. “It's hard to win that last game. I'm very proud of them.”
Incline, which has one more game in the regular season, is now 6-3 in league.
Murphy led all scorers with 19 points, including seven in the first quarter, while Krug finished with 17. Franklin scored nine points to lead the Highlanders as O'Connor and Tonking each had eight.
UP NEXT
Incline ends the regular season at North Tahoe on Saturday at 2 p.m.
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