Lady Cards pick up two more wins
NELIGH — Oh, these Randolph Lady Cardinals are really liking this winning thing.
Following two more wins last week, including Saturday’s 47-34 win at Neligh-Oakdale, the Lady Cardinals won four straight heading into this week’s slate.
They also defeated Winside, 47-19, in an impressive road victory.
Jaiden Taylor was on fire against Winside, nearly earning a triple-double, finishing with 16 points, eight rebounds and 10 steals, while Fye chipped in with eight points.
Taylor also netted a double-double against Neligh with 13 points, 10 rebounds and six steals while Gracie Eledge and Ariel Fye each scored nine points.
The defense was a big key to the team’s success, Coach Marcus Pappenhausen said.
“We did a lot better job defensively,” Pappenhausen said. “Against Winside we forced 34 turnovers with 22 steals. We were able to convert some of those steals into easy layups. We forced quite a few turnovers against Neligh-Oakdale but what we did a great job of that night was offensive rebounding. Also, we got a lot of girls involved that showed how it takes a team effort to get the victories. We have gotten four in a row and we hope to keep that going.”
Randolph will play Thursday against Plainview before the Lewis and Clark Conference Tournament begins Saturday with opponent, time and location yet to be determined.
“Against Plainview we will have to keep taking care of the ball,” Pappenhausen said. “They are a much-improved team this year and they have always given us trouble in the past. The girls are excited to keep this thing going so hopefully we can focus on practice this week and get ourselves prepared to keep the win streak going. Then we will see how the seeding takes shape for the conference tournament and will take it game by game once we get to that.”
Well, some of the team’s trends are in the positive direction and can only help make it happen.
“The girls have been doing a better job of taking care of the ball,” Pappenhausen said. “This week we averaged 10 turnovers a game. More girls are getting involved in the scoring column as well which is good to see. We need to continue doing a better job of rebounding. If we can keep a team from grabbing offensive rebounds, we will be fine. The other thing I would like to see the team improve on is shot selection.”
One of the players that are contributing to the overall improvement is Keely Pinkelman who is the team’s designated stopper.
“Every game she draws the other team’s best offensive threat,” Pappenhausen said. “I think she takes pride in that and likes to be known as our shut down girl. Keely is one that’s not afraid to get in there and rough them up. That’s her role and she knows that.”
Pinkelman doesn’t know who Gary Payton is, but she acknowledges her role as the team’s glove.
“I like my defense,” she said. “Being faster, it’s fun when you can run from one end of the court to the other and get a stop when they are still ahead of you. Getting a steal or causing a turnover to happen where one of my buddies gets a steal can also be fun.
“I just do what Marcus tells me to do. If I am supposed to stop the other’s team’s best player, I will stop the best player. For me, I see it more of a responsibility thing. One of my main goals is not to get my ankles broken and move my feet fast.”
Pinkelman also is pleased with the way the Lady Cardinals are trending.
“We are definitely seeing things start to click,” she said. “In the beginning, we had some rough games, but they taught us some things. Offensively, we struggle at times, but we are seeing those shots start to fall.”
Randolph 10 18 8 11 — 47
Winside 5 0 8 6 — 19
SCORING
Randolph - Jaiden Taylor, 16; Ariel Fye, 8; Gracie Eledge, 7; Natalie Munter, 6; Grace Nordhues, 5; Jenna Albers, 3; Erin Engel, 2.
REBOUNDS
Randolph - Jaiden Taylor, 8; Natalie Munter, 5; Jenna Albers, 3; Emmalee Harder, 3; Keely Pinkelman, 2; Ariel Fye, 2; Erin Engel, 2; Gracie Eledge, 1; Jessa Backer, 1; Ella Scott, 1; Grace Nordhues, 1.
ASSISTS
Randolph - Jaiden Taylor, 3; Erin Engel, 2; Natalie Munter, 1; Emmalee Harder, 1; Ariel Fye, 1.
STEALS
Randolph - Jaiden Taylor, 10; Gracie Eledge, 4; Ariel Fye, 2; Erin Engel, 2; Natalie Munter, 1; Emmalee Harder, 1; Ella Scott, 1; Grace Nordhues, 1.
Randolph 9 9 11 18 — 47
Neligh 6 6 11 11 — 34
SCORING Randolph - Jaiden Taylor, 13; Gracie Eledge, 9; Ariel Fye, 9; Natalie Munter, 8; Emmalee Harder, 4; Keely Pinkelman, 3; Grace Nordhues, 1.
REBOUNDS Randolph - Jaiden Taylor, 10; Natalie Munter, 10; Gracie Eledge, 5; Emmalee Harder, 5; Keely Pinkelman, 4; Ariel Fye, 4; Erin Engel, 4; Emma Munter, 2.
ASSISTS Randolph - Gracie Eledge, 2; Natalie Munter, 1; Jaiden Taylor, 1; Emmalee Harder, 1; Ariel Fye, 1.
STEALS Randolph - Jaiden Taylor, 6; Natalie Munter, 1; Emmalee Harder, 1; Keely Pinkelman, 1.
Stay in the know!
To get news alerts on your cell phone, get the Cedar County News app in the ITunes store or in the Google Play Store.
