By Dan Truttschel
Correspondent
Putting just one point on the scoreboard in any quarter isn’t usually a recipe for success.
But when it happens in the opening eight minutes, the rest of the night is spent in recover mode – and that’s a tall hill to climb.
The East Troy High School girls basketball team found that out the hard way Monday night, as the Trojans fell behind 13-1 to visiting Westosha Central and never recovered in a 47-29 non-conference loss.
East Troy, which fell to 6-15 overall, tried to battle back Monday, but it was too little, too late.
The Trojans put 28 points on the scoreboard the final three quarters, but the early deficit proved to be too much to overcome.
“We came out flat and had a very difficult time shooting,” East Troy coach Jeff Brown said. “We tried to fight back in the third quarter and played a little bit better in the second half, but we dug ourselves to much of a hole.”
Katrina Santos led East Troy with 12 points, followed by Katie Hodges with nine.
The news Friday was much better for the Trojans, as they earned their sixth win of the season with a 59-46 Rock Valley Conference decision over visiting Evansville.
East Troy, which improved to 4-11 in conference play, held Evansville to single digits in the first three quarters before the visitors struck for 29 points in the fourth.
But by then, the Trojans had already built a commanding lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
“It was by far our best game of the year,” Brown said. “We shot the ball better than we have all year.”
Santos led the way with 25 points and nine rebounds, followed by Brianna Casper with 10 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals. Katie Hodges added nine points and four rebounds, while Maddie Rosin chipped in with seven points, six assists and four rebounds.
Brown was pleased with Casper’s overall effort.
“She had a great game in all aspects,” he said. “It was good to see her hard work pay off.”
East Troy opened the week with a 37-25 loss Feb. 10 at Edgerton.
Neither team could put much offense up early, as Edgerton led 14-9 at halftime and 27-20 heading into the last eight minutes.
Santos had eight points and nine rebounds for the Trojans, followed by Kayla Casper with five rebounds and Katie and Jenna Hodges with two steals apiece.
The Trojans closed out their regular season Thursday night at Whitewater. The Whippets entered the final week as the state’s top-ranked Division 3 squad. Whitewater enters the final week at a perfect 21-0.
East Troy received the fifth seed in the upcoming Division 3 regional tournament and will travel to fourth-seeded Lake Mills next Tuesday night, Feb. 24. The winner heads to Whitewater Feb. 27 to take on the Whippets in a regional semifinal.
