Eastwood’s Mack Miller pulls down one of her eight rebounds in Tuesday night’s matchup against Genoa. (Nicholas Huenefeld | Sentinel-Tribune)
By Nicholas Huenefeld
Special to the Sentinel-Tribune
GENOA — The Eastwood girls basketball team got a strong offensive performance from Karly Wasserman, but a tough third quarter proved detrimental in a 52-39 loss to Genoa on the road Tuesday.
Wasserman had a team-best 13 points, including all eight of her team’s points in the third, but Genoa outscored the Eagles 20-8 in that frame to seize control.
“Karly played a really great offensive game,” Eastwood coach Brittany Butler said. “She got off her shots really quick, shot the ball with confidence, and that’s what you love to see out of a senior leader, especially for big games like this that you know mean a lot to them. I was really proud of the way that she looked for her shot with confidence.”
Genoa used its size as an advantage, getting a game-best 21 points from Makenna Moritz, along with 10 more from Keira Combs. Guard Kylie Pennington added 12 points.
Mack Miller, who missed Eastwood’s victory over Southview, returned to produce eight rebounds while battling with Moritz and crew. Butler was pleased with her inside presence on the boards.
“We were just in too much of a hurry offensively at times and didn’t knock down shots we normally would,” she said. “I believe in our kids and know we are getting better. We just have to stay focused for the games ahead. The second half just wasn’t ours tonight.”
A high-scoring, back-and-forth first quarter entertained fans. After Genoa jumped out to a 7-2 lead, a Wasserman 3-pointer and a layup from Kenna Nelson quickly erased that deficit.
The two teams then traded buckets, splitting the game’s first 26 total points. Moritz and Pennington then reeled off five straight before Gracyn Reiter’s jumper with just under a minute left pulled the Eagles within three after one.
Neither team could find a groove in the second quarter. Moritz scored the quarter’s first points via a layup with 3:15 left. She added a 3-pointer moments later for a 23-15 advantage that forced a timeout from Eastwood.
The Eagles (8-6 overall, 4-4 NBC) responded in strong fashion, getting a jumper from Miller, a three-point play from Reiter and a layup from Karissa Nelson that put them behind just one at the break.
“We came out strong in the first quarter,” Butler said. “We dug ourselves a hole in that second quarter, but we came back with just a few minutes left to go, and I thought that we had really good momentum going into halftime.
“Offensively, we just looked kind of rushed at times, especially in that second half. I touched on valuing possessions in our last game against Southview, and we did the same thing against Riverdale as well. But tonight, I don’t know, we just at times looked uncharacteristic offensively and weren’t strong enough with the ball.”
The Comets opened up the second half with eight straight points, and although Wasserman responded with back-to-back 3-pointers, Genoa added five more points via Moritz and Combs for a 36-28 lead with 4:17 left.
Wasserman nearly drilled another 3-pointer after that, but she was just inside the line and settled for a long two. Moritz then made consecutive layups, Pennington hit a jumper, and Stella Rethman’s free throw gave the Comets a 43-30 lead through three.
Genoa (12-4 overall, 6-1 NBC) led by as many as 17 in the fourth quarter while finishing off the win. They now get a rematch with league-leading Oak Harbor on Saturday.
“At times, we got some really good looks,” Butler said. “We were just inconsistent and didn’t necessarily look like us. They’re a great rebounding team, and I think tonight we didn’t do a great job on the boards (as a team). We got beat up a little bit and bullied some. It’s got to be a learning thing, and we’re going to continue on. There’s a lot of season left, and this game’s just going to make us better.”
In addition to Wasserman, the trio of Kenna Nelson (8), Reiter (7), and Karissa Nelson (5) combined for eight rebounds.