Strong defensive outing leads Loggers past Wolves

By Dylan Wilhelm / dylan@chronline.com
Posted 12/28/24

TUMWATER — Stout defense was the name of the game for Onalaska on Saturday, as the Loggers stifled Black Hills for most of the day in a 60-49 victory.

Both teams added points in a flurry …

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Strong defensive outing leads Loggers past Wolves

Posted

TUMWATER — Stout defense was the name of the game for Onalaska on Saturday, as the Loggers stifled Black Hills for most of the day in a 60-49 victory.

Both teams added points in a flurry in the fourth quarter, but the first three quarters were anything but an offensive showcase.

The two sides combined for just 70 points in those three frames, with Onalaska leading 42-28 with eight minutes remaining on the clock.

“I felt really good about our defense for three quarters,” Onalaska coach Alana Olson said. “I was happy with our defensive effort.”

Black Hills struggled against Onalaska’s press defense, though it wasn’t just with turnovers according to Black Hills coach Herb Guscott. 

“I think that it got us to play a little bit quicker than we wanted to,” Guscott said. “We got across half court and thought we still had to go fast. Instead we need to pull it out, slow it down, and get into our offense. I don’t think we really did that. But it’s a learning process.”

The Wolves started to poke holes in the Onalaska defense in the fourth — mainly due to Tyler Venable and Kiley McMahon’s combined 15 points in the frame — but the Loggers were able to maintain their lead with a strong offensive quarter of their own.

“This was a great opportunity for us to work through some of the zone looks that we haven’t seen a lot of,” Olson said. “It was really good for us to improve throughout the game with our zone offense.”

Emalie Jacoby finished with a game-high 29 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks, and four steals, while Delaney Marshall added 10 points and Renzy Marshal scored six.

McMahon led Black Hills with 21 points, while Natalie Buchanan scored 12 and grabbed seven rebounds and Venable finished with 10 points.

“I’m proud of the girls,” Guscott said. “They played hard. It just wasn’t our day.”

Black Hills now sits at 5-1 after its first loss, and the Wolves will look to get back on track at home against River Ridge on Friday. Onalaska (7-1) will look for its third consecutive win when it hosts Mossyrock on Wednesday, Jan. 8.