Lady Bulldogs pick up two wins on their home court last week

The Lady Bulldogs chalked up two wins this week, leaving the team 6-4 overall as they head into the final stretch of the regular season.

Haxtun took on Yuma and Caliche at home this week, picking up two conference wins to hold a 4-2 Lower Platte record with just two games remaining on the schedule.

"It is always great to get a win against a larger 2A school like Yuma," Head Coach Arlan Scholl said. "Our shooting percentage was still not the greatest, but our defense and rebounding was outstanding. Holding a Yuma team to 29 points was a great accomplishment. Our press was again the key to this game, causing Yuma to turn the ball over 30 times and we came up with 22 steals. This is a fun group of girls to watch as they anticipate what the other team is going to do with the ball. Yuma made a run in the fourth quarter and narrowed the score, but our grit and mental toughness allowed us to keep fighting and ultimately win the game."

Haxtun put up 11 points in the first quarter against Yuma, holding the visiting team to single digits with just six points. The Lady Bulldogs outscored their opponent by three in the second to hold onto a 20-12 lead at the half.

The second half of the contest was much the same as the home team Lady Bulldogs added 10 points in the third and nine in the fourth to hold on for a 39-29 win.

Senior Bella Tori scored 15 points for her team, connecting with six shots under the hoop and sinking three of six at the charity stripe. K'Lyn Bornhoft added seven points followed by Taylor Schram and Cassidy Goddard, each with six.

The Lady Bulldogs shot 55 percent from the free-throw line as a team, connecting with 12 of 22 shots. Allie Thompson went 75 percent at the line, sinking three of four attempts.

Goddard led the Lady Bulldogs under the basket, pulling down two rebounds on offense and eight on defense for a total of 10 on the night. Tori nabbed eight followed by Thompson with six and Schram with four. Schram tallied five assists, the team high, while also leading in steals with eight. Thompson tallied six steals followed by Bornhoft with five.

On Friday night, the Lady Bulldogs honored their parents with special appreciation, marking the final regular season home game on the schedule as the team faced off with Caliche. The Lady Bulldogs put 15 points on the board in the first quarter while holding the Lady Buffs to a goose egg. Haxtun added another 26 in the second while allowing the team's opponent to just five take a 41-5 advantage at half time.

Haxtun kicked the second half off with 13 points in the third and later put up 12 points in the fourth to take a 66-12 league win in front of a home crowd.

"Our press and pressure defense was just too much for Caliche to handle. We finally shot the ball better in this game and it was good to get the win for our senior players on their last night to play on their home court during the regular season.," Scholl said. "We still have some big games coming up and look to play competitively as we work towards obtaining a good seed in the post season playoffs."

Four Lady Bulldogs put up double-digits in the scoring column Friday night, led by Bornhoft with 14 points. The junior starter hit two three-point shots while also connecting with four shots under the basket. Thompson added 13 points followed by Goddard with 12 and Tori with 11.

Thompson again led at the free-throw line, sinking three of four shots for 75 percent. As a team, the Lady Bulldogs made four of six attempts at the charity stripe for 67 percent on the night.

Goddard and Tori each pulled down nine rebounds, leading the Lady Bulldogs, followed by Thompson and Schram, each with five. Schram tallied 11 assists.

This week the Lady Bulldogs were set to face off in a contest with the Holyoke Lady Dragons on the road Tuesday night, results of that contest were not available as of press time.

On Friday, Feb. 26, the team is set to take on the 3-6 Wiggins Lady Tigers on the road. Wiggins is currently 0-4 in league play. Haxtun travels to Otis the following week.