Lady Savages pick up dominant win

From the opening tip it seemed like the Waco girls wouldn’t stand much of a chance against the quicker, more physical and defensive-minded Lady Savages squad when they two teams met up on January 8 for a non-conference game. All those factors combined in Sigourney dominating all but a couple minutes of the game, resulting in a 57-25 win for the Lady Savages, extending their win streak to four games.

The Warriors caught Sigourney sleeping in the first couple possessions of the game, giving the home team a 4-0 lead and their fans hope their team could compete. That hope was short lived once Sigourney woke up and started to play their game, working to get the ball down low to Kaylee Weber, whom had a distinct advantage down low. She helped the Lady Savages put together a 15-0 run. Waco identified she was the primary scorer in the game and even when double-teamed, someone else on the team would get open for a chance to score. Sigourney continued to score and would hold a 23-8 lead at the conclusion of the first quarter.

“We came out and set the tone defensively, forcing a lot of turnovers, and our offense was efficient,” Sigourney coach Zach Tremmel said. “Finishing those bunnies has been a problem for us at times but we did an excellent job of doing that. That first quarter I would’ve taken us over anybody.”

The pace was dictated by Sigourney going forward with transition opportunities due to their stifling defense hounding the Waco ball-handlers. Weber kept getting the ball in the post and adding to her points total, going on to only miss one shot attempt in the game. As good as Weber was in the paint, it was the play by the Sigourney guards that allowed her to get open and get her the ball. Sigourney scored another dozen points in the second quarter and Waco put up a couple threes late but still trailed 35-14.

The second half was more of the same with some other names getting in the mix with Megan Stuhr quietly putting together a good night as well. Waco was frazzled throughout with the deficit increasing, held to only three points in the third quarter. While Sigourney only put up eight points themselves, they extended the lead, nonetheless.

Both teams had strong finishes and even then, Sigourney managed to beat Waco 14-11 in the final quarter. Some of the reserves were able to log some minutes, leading to more scoring opportunities for the Warriors. Sigourney had two finish in double-figures and almost added two more to that list by the end of the game.

“The other team was running their offense from 40 feet out most of the night and that’s a good sign for us. Every win is important, and we want to show up every night and it’ll help improve our seeding come tournament time,” Tremmel said. “I like the way they’re playing right now.”

Weber and Stuhr finished with 20 points apiece with Weber converting on 10-11 shot attempts and Stuhr making 7-15 attempts, three of which were from deep. Weber also added on seven rebounds, three assists and one block while Stuhr had seven steals, seven assists, two rebounds and one block. Summer Barthelman had seven points, five assists, two rebounds, one steal and one block and Makenna Hammes also had seven points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block in the win.

“As a freshman we saw glimpses that Kaylee could be pretty good, and she’s taken a liking to basketball and you can see the progress she’s made. She’s a horse and extremely strong when she can finish,” Tremmel said. “Defensively we’ve been solid all year but the way we finished here was impressive and that’s what we’ll have to do going forward.”

Sigourney was back home on January 8 when they hosted North Mahaska in a matchup between two of the top teams in the SICL. The Lady Savages went into that game with a 9-2 record, while the Lady Warhawks had a 8-2 record.