By Kory Carpenter

Record Sports Editor

With his team on its heels after giving up a nine-point second-half lead, Warrenton Head Coach Greg Williams had a decision to make.

“It was a gamble,” he said. “And I bet wrong.”

Wentzville Holt stormed back in the fourth quarter with an aggressive defense and hot 3-point shooting to tie the game at 64 with under a minute to play, and the Warriors looked flustered.

Warrenton had a single timeout remaining, and Williams decided to hold onto it in case he needed it on the final possession.

But as Holt knocked down a pair of free throws to preserve a 68-64 win, all Williams could do was clap his hands in frustration.

“We needed that experience, but I let our kids down,” Williams said. “I should have gotten us settled with a timeout or something, but I decided to play through it.”

Warrenton (2-1) held a 34-28 halftime lead, but Holt climbed back in the third quarter with a pair of early 3-pointers.

The lead was erased two minutes later on a layup, but junior guard Jenny Jansen calmed the storm with a pair of free throws late in the quarter to give Warrenton a 53-47 lead.

Jansen finished with a team-high 24 points.

The teams traded buckets early in the fourth quarter, and Holt began pressing.

Warrenton got sped up, and turnovers became a problem.

“I knew this would be a big test,” Williams said. “We knew it was going to come down to the wire, and we just have to execute.”

Holt turned Warrenton turnovers into points, and tied the game at 64 with under a minute remaining.

“They made some big shots and we just fell off in the last minute,” Kaylee Anderson said. “I didn’t expect them to hit that many in a row.”

Anderson battled a sickness to finish with eight points.

With under 30 seconds remaining, Jansen was called for a travel and Holt was fouled to stop the clock.

Despite getting three cracks at the free-throw line thanks to an offensive rebound and lane violation, Holt failed to capitalize.

Jansen had the ball in her hands with the game on the line, and drove straight to the rim.

“I wish I could have come through for the team late, but you can’t make them all,” Jansen said. “I felt like there was a block, but you don’t always get the calls.”

Warrenton looked like its usual self the first 25 minutes of the game.

The Warriors moved the ball, created space and scored with efficiency.

The final minutes, however, were a different speed.

“Our first two games were probably too easy,” Williams said. “Then we see this, and you realize you just have to keep getting better.”

After the game, Williams told his team he has to put them in better positions to win, and they need to hit their layups and free throws.

“I think this is good for us,” Jansen said. “It shows us where we are at. That is a good Class 5 team and we’re a good Class 4 team, so seeing that we can compete with them shows us we can compete with those types of teams.”

Warrenton hosts Silex Monday night before taking a 10-day break from games.

Williams wants to work on attacking different defenses over the break, and hopes Monday’s tough loss becomes a learning experience for his team down the road.

“We’re going to work on winning,” he said. “This was a great game between two great teams early in the year. It was a lot of fun.”

Jenny Jansen looks for the game-tying bucket late in Monday's game against Wentsville Holt. Jansen led the team with 24 points.                                     Kory Carpenter photo.