Chargers spoil Tiger girls basketball opener

Sully Buttes spoiled the Ipswich girls' 2021-22 basketball opener 67-33 on Tuesday, Dec. 7 in the Tiger Den.

It was a non-conference clash, but both schools are indeed Region 2B members.

The Tigers and Chargers had traded baskets early in the game, where the score was tied five different times, the last time being 10-10. But that was when the visiting team exploded for a 22-10 first-quarter ending scoring advantage. (Ipswich's final lead had been a rebound put back by Kaylin Onken for a brief 10-8 edge.)

The Chargers didn't let up their attack too much during the second quarter, despite a pair of free throws from Ipswich's Karlie Gohl that opened that stanza. But the visitors would still lead 35-21 at intermission and would then forge ahead 56-27 in the third stanza and comfortably closed out the game.

The Chargers obtained 28 points from Stevie Wittler and 13 from Allyson Wittler. They also landed Calleigh Chicoine into the double-figure scoring column with 10 points. Altogether they utilized scoring from six different players and were 26-57 in floor shots, which featured a trio of treys. They ended up 12-19 at the free throw stripe.

Ipswich, meanwhile, managed 12 baskets in 39 attempts which included a trey by Kaitlyn Bierman and another by Gohl. Bierman would finish her evening with 11 points, tying her with Quincy Olivier for the IHS scoring honors. Gohl almost reached double-figures with nine points. But scoring tapered off to those two points from Onken. (Ipswich went 7-13 in its free throw tries.)

A bright spot that evening was that the Tigers obtained 30 rebounds, led by Olivier with eight, nearly a double-double. The Chargers countered with 34 rebounds. They also forced 28 turnovers, exactly doubling their own 14. (Twenty of the Tigers miscues were indeed SB steals.) Meanwhile, Bierman led Ipswich with three steals and also handed out a team high three assists.