December 16, 2009

Watford girls take 4th place at Killdeer Roughrider Tournament

By Neal A. Shipman
Farmer Editor

Watford City’s varsity girls basketball team won their opening round game of the Roughrider Tournament in Killdeer last Tuesday with a 61-53 win over New England. But the Wolves struggled offensively in their next two games, falling to Heart River 37-29 and to Beulah 44-37 to take fourth place in the tournament.
This week the Wolves will be on the road as they travel to North Shore/Plaza on Thursday for a 7:30 p.m. game before traveling to Beach on Saturday for a 4 p.m. contest.
Roughrider Tournament
Watford City 61, New England 53
A strong third quarter propelled Watford City to a 61-53 win over New England in opening round action of the Roughrider Tournament on Thursday.
After playing to a 10-10 tie at the end of the first quarter and a 25-25 deadlock at halftime, Watford City went on a 16-4 scoring run in the third quarter to move the Wolves into the championship bracket.
“We shot the ball extremely well and played good defense on All-Stater Jordan Bender,” stated Berton Bates, Wolves’ head coach. “She scored 36 and 32 points in the other two games of the tournament.”
Dani Bates had the hot hand for the Wolves as she netted 18 points to pace Watford City in scoring.
Also scoring for Watford City was Marti Quale, Olivia Sundeen and Jayme Johnson with eight points each, Shakira McLaughlin and Ashli Foli with seven points each, Alexis Sanford with three points, while McKayla Haugeberg ended the game with two points.
For the game, the Wolves shot 60 percent from field, hitting on 28 of 46 attempts and were good on four of nine at the charity stripe for 44 percent.
Watford City    10    25    41    61
New England    10    25    29    53

Heart River 37, Watford City 29
Poor shooting and turnovers plagued the Wolves as Watford City fell to Heart River 37-29 in semifinal action of the Roughrider Tournament on Friday.
“We shot poorly and had a lot of turnovers down the stretch,” stated Berton Bates, Wolves’ head coach. “We are not handling the ball well against a man-to-man defense.”
In a low scoring game, Watford City played Heart River to a 5-5 first quarter tie and trailed the Cougars 16-14 at halftime.
But Watford City’s troubles began in the second half as the Wolves were outscored 16-6 in the third quarter. In spite of battling back in the fourth quarter, Watford City was not able to  make up their deficit.
Dani Bates led the Wolves in scoring with 14 points while Olivia Sundeen ended the game with five points.
Also scoring for Watford City was Jayme Johnson with four points, while McKayla Haugeberg, Marti Quale and Ashli Foli netted two points each.
For the game, the Wolves shot 13 of 43 from the field for 30 percent and were good on three of seven at the charity stripe for 42 percent.
Watford City    5    14    20    29
Heart River    5    16    32    37

Beulah 44, Watford City 37
Watford City couldn’t keep its offensive momentum up in the second half after playing Beulah to a 18-18 halftime tie in battle for third place in the Roughrider Tournament on Saturday.
After keeping the game close for the first two quarters of play, the Wolves trailed the Miners 28-26 at the end of the third quarter, and then were outscored 16-11 in the final eight minutes.
“Once again, we had poor ball handling. We need to improve our ball handling skills and free throw shooting in order to improve for our upcoming District 15 schedule,” stated Berton Bates, Wolves’ head coach. “Dani Bates had a very good tournament as she scored 46 points in the three games.
Dani Bates had a double-double in the game as she netted 14 points and hauled in 10 rebounds, while Shakira McLaughlin netted 13 points for the Wolves.
Also scoring for Watford City was Olivia Sundeen and Jayme Johnson with four points each, while Ashli Foli netted two points.
For the game, the Wolves shot 16 of 53 from the field for 30 percent and were good on just five of 16 at  the charity stripe.
Watford City    12    18    26    37
Beulah    7    18    28    44

WATFORD CITY WEATHER