After suffering a disappointing nine-point loss to Little Miami on Nov. 30, Glen Este bounced back with a 19-point win on the road over Walnut Hills on Wednesday, Dec. 7, 50-31.
Despite having no one on their roster listed over 5-foot-9 and facing two girls from Walnut Hills that stood over 6-feet tall, Glen Este used their patented zone defense to eliminate the touches and impact of 6-foot-2 freshman Amber Wilks and 6-foot senior Mallory Screws.
“We picked up (the zone) from Gonzaga and it’s been good to us,” Glen Este coach Jeff Click said after the game. “Obviously, we’re not a very big team, but we tell them we’re not guarding them with just one person, we’re guarding them all five.”
The Trojans zone frustrated Wilks and Screws throughout the game, giving up only seven points to the pair.
Glen Este was able to turn their defensive size disadvantage into an advantage on the offensive end of the court. The Trojans ran a weaving, motion offense around the perimeter, leaving inside the three-point line open for dribble-drives.
“If we are in the right spots and do the right things, we can play to our strengths, which is that our bigs can put the ball on the floor,” Click said.
The first quarter was fairly even with Katie Gaskill and Hannah Carson providing the offense for Glen Este early on.
The Trojans had an early scare as Gaskill came down awkwardly after contesting a layup by Walnut Hills’ Taylor Darks. The three-year varsity starter stayed down following the play, something that gave Coach Click a momentary worry.
“I thought that was pretty bad. What was going through my head was, ‘holy cow, we may have to play a girl who has no varsity experience.’ I was happy to see her get up.”
Gaskill was able to leave the floor under her own power and checked back into the game a minute later.
The Trojans held a slim 10-6 lead following the quarter, but they knew they were onto something at both ends of the floor.
Glen Este came out firing in the second quarter as Gaskill and Lindsey Singleton were able to get to the rim and draw some shooting fouls. Add on another Carson three-pointer and the Trojans had opened up a 19-8 lead with five minutes left in the half.
The Glen Este zone did a good job of boxing out and chasing down rebounds, keeping the Eagles twin towers off the offensive boards.
Patiently running their offense on the other end, Glen Este was able to go into the half with 27-10 lead.
Coming out of the locker room, the Trojans were keen on putting the game away.
Hannah Carson, a 5-foot-6 junior guard, led the charge with eight points in the first three minutes of the half as Glen Este went on a 13-3 run to break open the Trojans
biggest lead of the night, 40-15.
“Hannah’s a shooter and one thing she’s worked on this year is having a quicker release,” Click said. “We can’t throw it down to a 6-foot-3 girl, so we’re going to have to shoot it well.”
Glen Este took a 42-19 lead into the fourth quarter. The Trojans, with the game well in-hand, played a little sloppy in the final period, but they had enough of a cushion to
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allow it. The fourth was the only quarter they didn’t outscore the Eagles in, but they were able to leave with a 50-31 victory.
“I told them after the game I don’t know who was at Little Miami, but I don’t want them to come back, I prefer this group.”
Carson scored a game-high 16 points, including four three-pointers and Gaskill added 12 points for the Trojans. Walnut Hills was led by Katie Estep’s nine points.
The Trojans improved to 2-1 on the season with the win and went on to lose against Wilmington on Saturday, Dec. 10, 40-36. Glen Este was back in action on Monday, Dec. 12 as the hosted Loveland and again on Wednesday, Dec. 14 when they traveled to Milford.
Glen Este (2-1) – Gaskill 3 6 12, Singleton 1 3 5, Velten 1 0 2, Keith 3 2 9, Carson 6 0 16, Brenes 2 1 6.
Walnut (0-3) – Yisrael 1 0 2, Jones 3 1 7, Screws 1 1 3, Estep 3 3 9, Darks 3 0 6, Wilks 2 0 4.
Halftime: Glen Este 27-10. 3-pointers: G 6 (Keith, Brenes