The Bonduel High School girls basketball team came roaring out of the gate with a 67-17 win over Gillett in both teams’ season opener Tuesday in Bonduel.
Bonduel’s defense jumped on Gillett early, holding the Tigers to seven points in the first quarter. Gillett wouldn’t score again until the second half as the Bears built a 35-7 lead.
By the end, the Bonduel defense had forced 34 turnovers, five on steals by sophomore guard Danee Collier.
“Ball pressure on defense, and then pushing the ball up the court, that was nice,” Bonduel coach Missy Dowden said, “Getting the girls to move.”
Gillett coach Justin Daul gave credit to the Bears for the way they played.
“We knew what we were coming into in this game,” Daul said. “Bonduel is probably one of the better teams in the state. We knew we were overmatched, but I saw good things out of my girls.”
On offense, Bonduel spread the ball around early with seven girls scoring in the first half.
Senior guard Deanna Zernicke, making a return from shoulder surgery after an injury in last year’s WIAA Division 4 sectional semifinal, took over the game in the fourth quarter. Zernicke scored 12 of her team-high 16 points in the period, including a pair of back-to-back 3-pointers.
“She was holding her head down like, ‘I’m never going to shoot again,’” Dowden said. “She hit a couple of rebound shots, maybe 10-footers, and I was like, ‘OK, let’s call a play.’ She knew it had to be to her. She hit two in a row. … You could see the change. She was pleased.”
Zernicke also was one of the team’s toughest defenders, finishing with four steals and two assists.
Sophomore Hayley Sorenson made four baskets in the first half and finished with 14 points.
“She did a nice job,” Dowden said. “She’s quick. She makes the right cuts. It’s going to be fun to watch her develop.”
Senior Jen Dowden had 10 points, led the team with eight rebounds and had six assists, two steals and two blocks. Alexa Reinke and Emily Sorenson each had seven points.
Gillett sophomore Erin Balthazor led the Tigers with five points.
Missy Dowden credited scrimmaging all day Saturday against four teams for getting the team ready.
“It took care of a lot of little quirks we had to work on yesterday,” she said. “We were able to get a lot of them worked out.”
In junior varsity action, Bonduel won, 46-30.
Gillett (17)
Balthazor 2 1-1 5, Kohls 2 0-0 4, Wolfe 1 2-2 4, Wilbur 1 0-0 2, Loberger 1 0-0 2
Bonduel (67)
H. Sorenson 6 2-2 14, Dowden 4 2-2 10, Reinke 3 0-1 7, Schmidt 1 0-2 2, Zernicke 7 0-0 16, E. Sorenson 3 1-2 7, Collier 2 0-3 4, Pedersen 1 0-0 3, Pues 2 0-0 4
Gillett 7 0 8 2 — 17
Bonduel 15 20 12 20 — 67
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