Second quarter surge propels Coyotes past Banner County

Girls Basketball

Potter-Dix 49

Banner Co. 31

The Coyotes and Wildcats were clenched in a corner like boxers for three of four quarters. That Potter-Dix came away with a comfortable 49-31 home win on Saturday had much to do with a dominant second period performance, their ability to force turnovers and a quick start to the affair.

In fact, the Coyotes threatened to turn the contest into a rout from the opening tip. Within seconds of the whistle, Tiffany Lewis drew a foul and hit one of two. Alexus Rozelle then pushed through a crowd of Banner County defenders to convert from just outside the paint.

When the Wildcats tried to organize offensively, Dawson Sharman stripped the ball away and raced coast to coast for a lay up. Taylor Juelfs followed with back to back threes. Before time was half up in the opening frame, Potter-Dix commanded an 11-0 lead.

"We just caught Banner County at the start," observed Coyotes' head coach Jeff Einspahr.

Fortunes changed just as quickly, however. Within minutes the blowout became a knock down 12-11 battle, as Paige Cross, Dalle Rutledge, Shay White and Amanda Harrison countered for the visitors in a flurry of scoring.

"We got really sloppy," Potter-Dix's Sharman explained. "Our defense got lazy."

Indeed, multiple traveling calls and a failure to box out Cross as she maneuvered for rebounds hurt the Potter-Dix cause. The Coyotes escaped from the see-saw first quarter with a 14-11 lead thanks to a Sharman buzzer beater.

The shot seemed to ignite the hosts. Over the next eight minutes they did little wrong. Meanwhile the Wildcats watched as their game unraveled, managing just a late put back and a charity shot, both by Rutledge, who ended up with a team high 9 points.

Quarter number two turned into an extended 13-3 Coyotes run, starting with another two-pointer from the scrappy Sharman, who peeled across the lane finding room at the bottom of the key.

"Dawson knows where to be," coach Einspahr said. "She has a knack for the basketball."

Jourdan Langley took advantage of a foul that put Potter-Dix into the bonus, hitting the front end of a one and one. Juelfs converted from the circle and Lanie Moench made a Savannah Shaw steal pay off by sinking a turn around jumper.

The rest of Potter-Dix's offensive output in the period was provided by Juelfs, including her third three of the night.

"I wasn't so hot last night," Juelfs said, referring to the Coyotes' 47-14 opening night loss to Sedgwick County. "I came in at 8:30 this morning to work on my shot."

Clearly the extra work paid off. She led all shooters with 16 points on the night. A defensive change that Banner County struggled to solve also tipped things in the host's favor.

"We had a lot of steals from our press," Sharman explained.

At the break, Potter-Dix held a convincing 27-14 advantage. The Wildcats' inability to find a solution to the Coyotes' press determined the game's outcome.

"Compared to last night, the press was the difference," Einspahr pointed out. "We got turnovers and we got opportunities off of turnovers. We played with energy."

The entire second half was tradeoff, with Potter-Dix maintaining their advantage. Ashlynne Hanan banged one off the glass for the Wildcats, Rozelle countered with a power move in the paint for the Coyotes. Savannah Jordan converted a fast break started by Cross to bring Banner County within 10 points, Tiffany Lewis responded with a jumper from the bottom of the key to extend the Potter-Dix lead once again.

All the back and forth action amounted to a 49-31 win for the home side, their first of the new year.

"We're looking to get better," Einspahr said. "We have to learn to play together, but with this team I'm not afraid to play anybody on the bench."