The answer was clear to Coach Barb Woodruff. Her Warrenton girls basketball team did not execute on offense, and it was the difference between the Warriors pulling off a milestone upset or ending up …
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Warrenton Girls Lose to New Haven
Posted
By Derrick Forsythe, Record Sports Editor
The answer was clear to Coach Barb Woodruff.Her Warrenton girls basketball team did not execute on offense, and it was the difference between the Warriors pulling off a milestone upset or ending up in the all-too-familiar consolation bracket.“Average is as close to the bottom as it is to the top,” said Woodruff. “We’ve got to decide when we want to be above average.”Despite a promising first quarter in which it matched each New Haven basket, Warrenton proved it’s not yet ready to cross the threshold, falling to the defending state Class 2 runners-up 55-40.“We did a lot of standing and watchingon offense tonight,” said Woodruff. “When people play us in man-to-man, we have a tendency not to move or adapt.”Early on, the Warriors were getting the looks they wanted from underneath the basket, with three different players netting four points.Carrying a 12-11 lead into the second period, Warrenton became careless with its shot selection, according to Woodruff. She wasn’t seeing the patience she desired from her offense and that was being exhibited by the opposition.The Warriors were also one-and-done on many possessions, having to sprint back in transition.“We didn’t crash the boards or get any offensive rebounds,” said Woodruff. “We gave up two lob plays we knew were coming. If we don’t block out, and we give up that many rebounds, it’s pretty hard to win.”While New Haven was getting a balanced contribution from all over the floor, the Warriors counted on three players for the entirety of their scoring through three quarters.“In the second quarter we got into foul trouble,” added Woodruff.It allowed the Shamrocks to pull ahead 28-20 by halftime, where Woodruff addressed her team’s inattentiveness on defense. They had given up 13 points to Rachel Steinhoff in that 8-minute stretch.“We didn’t talk on the lob passes,” said Woodruff. “We were trying to mix up the defense to slow them down.”New Haven played a very deliberate half court offense that tediously waited for the right moment to catch the Warriors off guard. The Shamrocks gradually pulled away, as Warrenton’s scoring options became more limited in the final two quarters.Freshman Jenny Jansen scored 23 and was the only Warrior to hit a bucket during the third quarter. Her prowess alone wasn’t enough to match New Haven’s increasingly efficient offensive attack.“I think they expected us to play zone, so we tried to mix up the defense a lot,” said Woodruff. “But they did a great job of adapting and taking advantage of what we gave them.”Most of the game was played inside the perimeter, which New Haven hitting just one trey and Warrenton knocking down a pair of three-pointers, both in the fourth quarter. By that time, the Shamrocks had established a 40-28 lead that seemed insurmountable.Woodruff says he team appeared to reach a point of surrender, when it no longer felt capable of competing with the tournament’s No. 3 seed.“I hate that mentality (of giving in),” said Woodruff. “Regardless of whether we’re scoring, we can always play defense and hustle.”Steinhoff went on to score 18, while junior Kylie Toebben netted nine points for Warrenton.The Warriors were scheduled to meet Montgomery County on Wednesday in the consolation semifinal.
The Warrenton girls basketball team fell to New Haven in the first round of the Hermann Tournament. The Warriors then won against Montgomery County in the consolation semifinal and will play for the consolation title at 430 p.m. on Friday.
