Viking girls’ ballers sail past Bulldogs; crush Cardinals

By Cara L. Dempski

After a 0-2 start in conference action, a youthful Colfax girls’ basketball squad has quickly gained experience and maturity to turn it’s season around. The Vikings have been winners in six of their past seven Dunn-St. Croix contests including a pair of impressive wins over Boyceville and Spring Valley last week.

In its first meeting with Boyceville back in early December, Colfax came up short on its home floor. Bulldog senior Madysn Riek proved the bane of the Vikings’ existence. After sinking a last-minute shot to tie the game at the end of regulation, Riek led Boyceville to a 45-42 finish in overtime in that game.

Fast forward to last Tuesday, January 24 contest between the two teams in Boyceville, and one saw a completely different outcome. This time around, the Vikings came out on top with a 42-35 win against the Bulldogs.

Colfax welcomed Spring Valley to its gym on Friday, January 27 and the Vikings capped the week with a 56-30 rout of the Cardinals.

The Vikings are now 9-7 overall and 6-3 in the Dunn-St. Croix. They will host Elk Mound this Thursday, February 2. Colfax will then travel to Elmwood on Tuesday, February 7 to play Plum City/Elmwood before returning home to host Glenwood City on February 10.

Boyceville

Coach Joe Doucette called the Viking girls’ January 24 game at Boyceville a nice win.

“We finally dug deep and made some plays and free throws at clutch times,” Doucette clarified.

The Colfax squad has struggled for much of this season with making key plays and picking up points on free throws. The team picked up 19 of its total 45 points on charity shots. Freshman standout Kameri Meredith accounted for nine of the free throws and picked up four field goals on her way to being the game’s top scorer with 17 points. 

Taylor Irwin picked up eight points with a pair of field goals, a three-pointer, and a free throw. Alyssa Dachel and Emma Hurlburt tied with six points apiece, and Savannah Henricks earned five on free throws.

Senior Ally Heidorn sat out due to a concussion, requiring players from the bench to step up. Doucette said he hopes to get Heidorn back soon to make a good run in the last part of the season. 

Boyceville’s Madysn Riek and Morgan Kuhn tied with 12 points to lead the Bulldogs offensively.

COLFAX 42, BOYCEVILLE 35
Colfax………………………………22  20 — 42
Boyceville…………………………15  20 — 35

TEAM STATISTICS (FG-FT-F-T)

Colfax (7-19-12-42) A. Dachel 0-3-2-6, K. Meredith 4-9-3-17, S. Henricks 0-5-1-5, T. Irwin 2-1-0-8, B. Buchanan 0-0-1-0, H. Sykora 0-0-1-0, E. Hurlburt 1-1-4-6.

Boyceville (5-13-16-35) R. Prestrud 0-0-1-0, C. Malean 2-2-1-9, M. Kuhn 0-3-4-12, M. Riek 2-8-4-12, E. Harmisch 1-0-1-2, B. Hellmann 0-0-5-0.

THREE-POINTERS C — A. Dachel 1, T. Irwin 1, E. Hurlburt 1; B — C. Malean 1, M. Kuhn 3.

Spring Valley

Doucette said his young team continued to struggle playing a consistent game against the Cardinals on January 27. 

“We played in spurts. We had a good one early, and another one early in the second half,” Doucette explained. “We have been trying to be more consistent in our effort and fundamentals. We know that later we can’t play in spurts, we have to be good for 36 minutes.”

The Colfax girls’ coach said his team continues to be excited about its talent and ability. He thinks the Vikings will be playing some of their best ball by the end of their regular season, and the team is hoping it can prove itself in the home stretch.

Savannah Henricks was the game’s top scorer, reeling in 14 points with four field goals and a pair of threes. Freshman Kameri Meredith continued her streak of strong games, taking credit for nine points in the game. 

Hannah Sykora earned seven points with a pair of field goals and three-pointer, Alyssa Dachel and Bryanna Buchanan logged six points each, Morgan Schleusner and Emma Hurlburt both picked up five points, Taylor Irwin recorded three points, and Addy Olson sent in a free throw for one point.

Spring Valley’s Sarah Kaveh scored six points for the Cardinals.

SPRING VALLEY 30, COLFAX 56
Spring Valley……………………..14  16 — 30
Colfax………………………………26  30 — 56

TEAM STATISTICS (FG-FT-F-T)

Spring Valley (8-8-12-30) T. Huntress 1-0-3-2, C. Wegener 1-1-0-3, T. Cipriano 0-2-0-2, S. Kaveh 0-0-2-6, B. O’Brien 2-0-1-4, K. Schreiber 2-1-2-5, A. Lee 1-1-1-3, L. Johansen 1-3-3-5.

Colfax (15-5-13-56) A. Dachel 0-0-1-6, M. Schleusner 2-1-2-5, K. Meredith 3-0-3-9, S. Henricks 4-0-2-14, T. Irwin 1-1-1-3, B. Buchanan 1-1-0-6, A. Olson 0-1-0-1, H. Sykora 2-0-1-7, E. Hurlburt 2-1-3-5.

THREE-POINTERS SV — S. Kaveh 2; C — A. Dachel 2, K. Meredith 1, S. Henricks 2, B. Buchanan 1, H. Sykora 1.