Girls Lose to Highland
The girls got off to a strong start at Highland but couldn’t keep pace and dropped the matchup, 28-68.
It was a close game through the first 11-minutes of action before the Highland Huskies pieced together a big run to close out the half leaving the Ravens down 14-30. Out of the break Hillcrest struggled to knock down shots and Highland drilled a couple of threes to widen the gap. From there the Huskies pressed on to seal the win.
Yani Gutierrez led Hillcrest with another double-double, 14 points and 10 rebounds. Esther Hughes added 10 points, five rebounds and two steals.
“I really liked the way we played in the first half, really the whole game tonight,” Hillcrest head coach Kari Heusinkveld said. “There were a lot of whistles in the first half which was tough to play through, but the difference in this game was free throws and finishes in the open court. We got to the line just as much as Highland did in the first half and we didn’t hit our free throws, they did. We also forced some turnovers and got quick outlets off rebounds for open layups that we didn’t capitalize on, they did. Early on when you knock down some of those free throws and make some of those layups, all the sudden you’re down by two instead of 10 or 12 which makes a huge difference.”
“Tonight, was a turning point for this group. Even though the score doesn’t reflect it, we put together one of our better performances. We stuck together, executed well on set pieces and did a much better job gapping and forcing tough shots in our zone. I thought Meredith Blossom and Sarena Gerber especially stepped it up defensively and did an excellent job. If we bring that same intensity and focus tomorrow at home against Columbus, there’s no doubt in my mind the outcome will be different.”
Hillcrest falls to 1-17 overall, 0-15 in conference play. The girls return to action on Tuesday, February 4th at home against Columbus for senior night. Tipoff is set for 6 PM with senior night for the boys and girls following the girls game.