WINONA — Defensive pressure allowed the Austin girls to pull away from Winona in the second half on Friday night and win their third straight game.
This was a hotly contested Big Nine Conference basketball game in the first half with the visiting Austin Packers leading by a point at halftime. The Packers then stretched out their lead in the second half for a 53-44 win.
"We came out in the second half and ran a few offensive plays, which resulted in a couple of easy baskets," Austin coach Gary Peterson said. "That gave us the momentum and we stretched it out for a 10-point lead. They came back, but we took care of the ball down the stretch."
Babaye Oja led the way for the Packers with 18 points on the night. Jenna Svoboda was also in double figures with 17 points in the road win. Ellen Blacklock led Winona with a game-high 22 points.
"Babaye and Jenna have been consistent scorers for us all season," coach Peterson said. "We switched defenses throughout the second half and got some shots off steals."
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Although the big two carried most of the scoring load for the Packers, the rest of the girls chipped in timely baskets. Taylor Lady made a three-pointer to help the Packers pull away. A total of eight different players scored in the road win.
"This was another nice conference and section win," Peterson said. "After a tough start to the season with those three losses, now we're playing well."
Austin (3-3, 3-1 Big Nine) plays Simley at home on Tuesday night with an early tip-off at 6 p.m. in the Berven Gym.
AUSTIN (53)
Babaye Oja 18, Jenna Svoboda 17, Taylor Lady 7, Mary Kate Barinka 4, Sophie Hebrink 2, Nina Carney 2, Danielle Tschann 2, Meredith Molhusen 1.
WINONA (44)
Ellen Blacklock 22, Haley Schultz 6, Nicky Becher 5, Ciara Morcomb 5, Audrey Scharmer 4, Makala Hansen 2.
Halftime— Austin 24, Winona 23.
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Three-pointers— AUS 3-10 (Oja 1, Svoboda 1, Lady 1). WIN 3-14 (Schultz 2, Becker 1).
Free throws— Austin 12-20, Winona 13-19.
Rebounds— AUS 34 (Oja 10, Svoboda 8); WIN 38.
Turnovers— Austin 15, Winona 24.
