#13 Tornadoes hold off persistent HWC squad

Jordan VanDerSloot turned in six points over the final 1:30 to help SL prevail. / Photo by Trent Johnson. [Click to enlarge]

STORM LAKE - An impressive three-point shooting display kept Western Christian in the game time and time again, but Storm Lake's balanced attack and pressure defense prevailed in the end as the green and white held of the Wolfpack Friday night, 61-58.

Storm Lake opened strongly as a Jordan Bauer steal opened up a Slone Masters basket for an early 8-3 lead. The lead grew to 13-6, when the Wolfpack switched to a full-court press to slow the Tornado attack.

A 17-11 first quarter lead grew to the Tornadoes' largest of the night as a Masters steal and lay-up made it 25-16 midway through the second.

The Wolfpack rallied from their, however, closing the half on a 14-5 run to tie it up at 30-30 after two quarters of play.

The scoring slowed for both teams in the third, with Storm Lake clinging to a 42-38 lead entering the final quarter. They would open the quarter much like the first, grabbing a 47-40 lead, but a mid-quarter rally saw Western Christian cash in from beyond the arc on three straight possessions to tie the game at 51-all.

Kayla Gesink's bucket on the ensuing possession gave the Wolfpack their first lead since the opening minutes, but Bauer and Cassie Meylor would reclaim the SL advantage with back to back scores the next two trips down the court.

Kolette Heynen's bucket tied it at 55-55 heading into the final 1:30 of play, where SL sophomore Morgan VanDerSloot took over. She would hit a three at the 1:10 mark and then tip a WC inbound pass on the other end of the court to regain possession. After being fouled, VanDerSloot knocked down 1-of-2 free throws to make it a two possession. A Wolfpack travel and foul put her at the line again where she knocked down both. WC would hit a buzzer beating three to close the scoring at 61-58.

"I thought Western Christian played excellent ball," said SL head coach Mike Wabake. "I wasn't expecting them to shoot three's like that. They impressed me. We said this wasn't going to be an easy ball game, but when it came down to it the girls made big baskets for us."

Slone Masters led four Tornadoes in double figures, finishing with 19 points on the night. Cassie Meylor chipped in with 14, VanDerSloot added 12, and Katie Blum 10.

Gesink led all scorers with 22 on the night.

Next up for the Tornadoes is a pair of road games, starting with a ranked Spirit Lake club Tuesday night.