JERSEYVILLE – Civic Memorial High School battled against the host team in the first day of play at the annual Jersey Community High School Girls Basketball Holiday Tournament.
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The Panthers could not seem to keep up with the pace of the Eagles, who stood at 11-0 prior to their appearance in Jerseyville. After four quarters, Jersey fell to CM 69-23.
After this Mississippi Valley Conference battle, the Panthers’ record fell to 8-5 for the season.
“This is a great way to start the tournament,” CM head coach Jonathan Denney said. “We shot the ball really well early and I thought we locked down defensively a little bit better at times.
“We’re trying to get to a point where we can be better, and I always think there’s room for improvement, but we had a great performance today by everyone on our team.”
The Eagles came out of the gate ready to shoot, earning 24 points in the first quarter alone. The Panthers struggled to make it to the basket, only scoring 12 points before the long break.
“Whenever you get down like that so early, you can’t try to take long possessions,” Jersey head coach Kevin Strebel said. “We weren’t in the game from the beginning. They [CM] had players that aren’t necessarily their biggest supporters step up.”
Jerseyville improved slightly in the second half, adding 11 more points to the board. However, it was shadowed by 28 points brought in by the Eagles.
“There were times that we improved on some things, but they’re good; There’s no doubt about it. At some point, [CM] may be ranked one of the best in the state.”
Allie Troeckler lead the Eagles with a whopping 27 points to the board while Kaylee Eaton brought in 21, including five out of seven successful three-point shots. Freshman Tori Pfeifer came out to score 8 points. Anna Hall, Kourtland Tyus and Hannah Schmidt scored six, five, and two points respectively.
Jersey’s Mackenzie Thurston led the Panthers in points with seven added in the game. Ashleigh Trochuck and Peyton Tisdale each added five points while Alexis Liles, Bethany Muenstermann and Abby Manns locked in three, two and one point respectively.
The tournament continues Wednesday as CM takes on Freeburg at 1:30 p.m. The Midgets fell to both Jersey and Carrollton on Monday. In a post-game interview, Coach Strebel mentioned that Freeburg seems to be a better match up for his team.
The Panthers will also face Carrollton at 2 p.m. CM will have their shot against the Hawks at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday night.
