Lady Eagles headed to state
Lady Eagles headed to state
By Jerry W. Kram
A quick start and strong rebounding down the stretch earned the New Town Lady Eagles a berth in the North Dakota Girls Class B State Tournament with a 59-44 victory over the Parshall Lady Braves.
Thursday’s Championship game saw the Lady Eagles get out to a quick start. New Town had struggled in the first quarter against North Shore-Plaza in the District 15 Tournament and against the Watford City Wolves in the Region 8 semifinal game. Lady Eagles’ coach Orville Drosdal said he emphasized starting quickly against the Lady Braves.
“We wanted to establish a quicker pace at the start of the game,” Drosdal said. “We were lucky and got that accomplished.”
The Lady Eagles quickly built a double digit lead while their defense limited Parshall to just nine points in the first quarter. Drosdal credited Taylor McGrady for sparking the Lady Eagle effort at the beginning of the game. McGrady scored the bulk of her 14 points in the first quarter. The early lead allowed the team to relax and get into their game. By half time the Lady Eagles had built up an 18 point advantage, 39-21.
“Mentally, you get a little more comfortable, a little more relaxed and you try and build on that,” Drosdal said. “If you’re a little bit behind you tend to tighten up and things don’t come as easily.”
