Lions edged by Go-Hawks, 55-53

by Marianne Gasaway

The Clear Lake Lions skidded into the holiday break with three straight losses.  On Thursday, Dec. 20, the Lions were edged by Waverly-Shell Rock, 55-53.

The Go-Hawks (8-1) entered the game ranked eighth among Class 4A schools by the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Association; the Lions (6-3) were ranked fourth in Class 3A.

“I was pleased to see us shoot well from the perimeter.  Waverly is a very good defensive and I thought we were patient offensively, We just couldn’t find that key defensive rebound late to secure the win,” said Clear Lake Coach Bart Smith. “It’s something we didn’t do well all week against these good teams. “If we want to make a late run in February rebounding has to be our priority.”

A raucous home crowd may have helped the Lions jump out to a 16-12 first quarter lead, but by the second period the Go-Hawks had settled in and outscored the Lions, 16-9, to take a three-point lead into the break, 28-25.

A nearly even third quarter had W-SR leading 43-41 when the fourth quarter began, but the Lions surged ahead just three-minutes into the final frame, 48-46.  The Go-Hawks took the lead back again after the Go-Hawks connected on three-point play.  They extended their lead to 53-48 after a series of loose balls, turnovers and free throws.

With 9.3 seconds remaining, the Lions finally got a bucket to make the score 54-50 and Lexi Fasbender drained a three-pointer with 1.5 left to pull Clear Lake to within one point, 54-53.  The Lions were whistled for a quick foul when the Go-Hawks in-bounded the ball and W-SR tacked on one point, 53-55.  A half-court heave from Sara Faber to Julia Merfeld missed at the buzzer and the Lions went down, 55-53.

Merfeld was Clear Lake’s leading scorer in the game with 13 points.  Faber finished with 10-points and a team-high seven rebounds.  Zoe Fasbender put in nine points, Chelsey Holck had eight, Lexi Fasbender six, Kaitlyn Vanderploeg five, and Mikayla Vanderploeg two-points.

The Go-Hawks were led by sophomore Abbie Draper, who finished with 26 points and nine rebounds.

“Defensively we couldn’t adjust to the post player,” said Coach Smith after the game.  “She was a problem all night and we just didn’t have an answer for her.”

Heading into the Christmas break four teams are tied at the top of North Central Conference standings.  Clear Lake, along with Algona, Hampton-Dumont and Iowa Falls-Alden, each have 4-1 records in the league.  Clarion-Goldfield-Dows and Webster City are each 1-3, while St. Edmond is 1-4 and Humboldt is winless at 0-5.