In a tough week for the girls varsity basketball team, Elmria defeated the huskies 57-17 and Cottage Grove beat them 52-15 on the road on Jan. 26 and Friday.
Cottage Grove led 13-1 after a quarter and 26-3 at halftime. After three quarters, the Huskies trailed 45-6 and then put nine points on the board in the final quarter.
“We did good on defense,” said Assistant Coach Dave McNeil, who filled in for Coach Steve Brown. The game underscores the challenges facing the program.
The program has several players with little or no basketball experience.
“Until the team gets an established program establishing fundamentals, we’re going to be working on fundamentals during the season,” McNeil said. A team like Cottage Grove doesn’t need to work on the fundamentals. Instead Cottage Grove is focused on strategy.
McNeil and Assistant Coach Karyn Hartsook will host a clinic this year for junior high players, and they’re looking for ways to begin integrating the younger basketball programs, letting them know what the high school needs, a coaching plan with the same expectations of the team.
“These are growing pains,” Brown said. “The girls here are paying the price for not having a youth program.”
The programs operate relatively independently, Brown said. The difference can be seen in programs with extensive programs among younger children that work cohesively with the high school, from softball to wrestling.
“That’s what it’s going to take,” Brown said. “It’s going to take a village. It’s going to be hard, and unfortunately, it’s going to be hard on the girls who haven’t had that.”
Against Elmira, The Huskies trailed 19-4 after one quarter and 25-8 at halftime. Elmira’s lead grew to 37-15 by the end of the third quarter.
Ally tow led scoring in both games with 11 against Cottage Grove and 13 against Elmira.
Elmira is 11-7 overall and 4-1 in league in second behind Sutherlin. Cottage Grove is 1-4 in league and 4-15 overall, fifth in league. The Huskies are 0-4 in league and 3-12 overall.
They were scheduled to travel to Siuslaw on Tuesday. They visit Junction City on Thursday and host Illinois Valley at noon on Saturday.
Sweet Home 1 2 3 9 – 15
Cottage Grove 13 13 19 6 – 52
Sweet Home scoring: Ally Tow 11, Kayla Miller 2, April Underwood 1, Chiara DiMola 1, Kaylee Lewis, Bethany Gingerich, Ashley Wickline, Hailey Silver, Kayla Bennett.
Cottage Grove scoring: Keara Murphy 11, Melisssa Thielman 11, Blomquist 9, Albrecht 8, Caro 6, Child 2, Bethke 2, Arnold 2, Sand, Whisler, Nichols-Ferguson.
Sweet Home 4 4 7 2 – 17
Elmira 19 6 17 15 – 57
Sweet Home scoring: Tow 13, Miller 2, Wickline 1, Kaitlyn Autry 1, Gingerich, Underwood, Bennett.
Elmira scoring: Miranda Jensen 17, Alex Olsen 17, Smith 11, Anderson 6, Blunt 3, Stone 3, Mobley 2, Welsh 1, Webber, Mooers, Greene Bradley, Kaiser.