Blistering start enables QND girls basketball team to roll past Carrollton, remain undefeated
QUINCY — Eric Orne could see it in his players’ eyes and attitude during Saturday morning’s shootaround. The “rough game” he referred to Friday wasn’t going to repeat itself 24 hours later.
“They knew (Friday) night wasn’t what we wanted to represent,” Orne said.
However, few could have anticipated what transpired in the early stages of Saturday night’s affair. The Raiders scored 34 points, made 11 of 13 field-goal attempts, and connected on 8 of 10 3-pointers in the first quarter.
“(The players) came in with a purpose, and we had a good game plan, and we took it from there,” Orne said.
In a battle of early season unbeatens, QND coasted to a 66-35 win over Carrollton on the second night of the QND/Gully Transportation Shootout at The Pit.
“I think we really did a good job of moving the ball and just finding the open person,” QND junior forward Jenna Durst said. “Sage (Stratton) was really hot. We did the best we could to get her the ball. She was making everything, so we just kept on giving it to her.”
Stratton, QND’s senior guard and Drury University commit, drilled four threes in the first frame and had 14 points. All of Stratton’s team-high 17 points came in the first half as she helped the Raiders (3-0) build a 53-14 lead at the intermission.
But it was Stratton’s defense that Orne boasted about the most.
Stratton held Carrollton’s top scorer, Lauren Flowers, to 16 points. Flowers, an Illinois State University softball commit, entered the contest averaging 27 points per game.
“She just digs in,” Orne said of Stratton’s defensive ability. “She sacrifices so much to make sure that our team is successful. In doing so, she just takes on the main objective defensively with our mindset and our game plan.”
Flowers was limited to one field goal and two free throws in the first quarter and didn’t score a point in the second quarter.
“It was one of those things we knew we had to shut (Flowers) down,” Orne said. “She was coming off two 30-point performances.”
QND’s offensive explosion can’t be overlooked, especially in the first 16 minutes of the contest. The Raiders converted 16 of 23 shots from the floor, including 11 3-pointers.
Durst said she had never been part of a first half the Raiders put together.
“But I think we’re definitely capable of doing that every game,” said Durst, who was one of three QND players in double figures and finished with 11 points.
Sophomore forward Marie Eversman added 15 points off the bench, while juniors Tristan Pieper and Ari Buehler chipped in with eight points apiece.
The crisp ball movement in Saturday’s first half seemed to erase a rather stagnant first two quarters of Friday’s affair with Calhoun when the Raiders had a nine-point lead at halftime before turning it on in the second half and ending with a 30-point victory.
“That’s what we had been practicing on for three weeks and been waiting on,” Orne said. “Maybe that’s our breakout game. We’ll see. I know we still got two games next week (road contests at Western and West Hancock), but it’s something we know now we can do on a permanent basis.”
Steady progress is what Durst alluded to as the Raiders’ main point of emphasis.
“I think we’re definitely improving every single game and every single day at practice,” she said. “Hopefully by postseason we’re playing our best basketball.”
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