Head coach Jeff Overmyer liked the intensity the Park Rapids girls basketball team brought on the defensive end of the court during Friday night's game against Long Prairie-Grey Eagle.
The Panthers forced 40 turnovers and held LP-GE to only 24 percent shooting from the field in a 65-29 victory Dec. 14 at the Area High School gym in a game between Section 8AA South foes.
LP-GE held an early 3-2 lead before a 21-0 run put the Panthers in control. Three layups by Kaisa Coborn and two jumpers apiece by Paige Johnson and Rilee Michaelson gave Park Rapids a 23-3 advantage with 4:51 to play in the first half.
Jessica Wolbeck's jumper ended that run at the 3:26 mark while a jumper by Maria Montanez-Holen and a 3-pointer by Katilin Welters made it 25-10 at the half.
A 3-pointer by Coborn, a jumper by Julia Johnson, and two inside baskets by Michaelson to open the second half extended the Panthers' lead to 35-10 with 15:20 to play.
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After Welters responded with two inside baskets and a 3-pointer to cut the gap to 35-17 at the 10:55 mark, three straight jumpers by Coborn, two layups by Paige Johnson, two layups by Coborn, and layups by Michaelson and Kendra Coborn produced a 53-24 advantage with 5:47 left.
Two layups by Michaelson, a jumper by Paige Johnson, and two free throws apiece by Whitney Steffel, Paige Johnson and Natalie Kinkel concluded the scoring.
Kaisa Coborn scored 21 points, Paige Johnson scored 17 points, Michaelson had a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds, and Kendra Coborn dished out 12 assists as the Panthers improved to 4-0 against section opponents. The Panthers had 31 steals with Kendra Coborn (7), MIchaelson (6), Paige Johnson (5) and Kaisa Coborn (5) leading the way. Park Rapids improved to 4-1 on the season.
Welters' 11 points and seven rebounds led the Thunder, who fell to 0-2 in section games and 1-5 overall. LP-GE made only 11 of 46 shots, including going 4-for-17 on 3-pointers.
LONG PRAIRIE-GREY EAGLE: Middendorf 1 0-0 2, Liebsch 1 2-2 5, Salazar Cervantes 2 0-0 5, Welters 4 1-3 11, Wolbeck 1 0-0 2, Montanez-Holen 2 0-0 4. Totals: 11 for 46 (FG), 3 for 5 (FT).
PARK RAPIDS: Ka. Coborn 10 0-0 21, Ke. Coborn 2 0-0 4, P. Johnson 6 5-6 17, Michaelson 7 0-0 14, J. Johnson 1 1-2 3, Steffel 0 2-2 2, Kinkel 1 2-2 4. Totals: 27 for 64 (FG), 10 for 12 (FT).
Halftime: Park Rapids 25. LP-GE 10. Three-pointers: Liebsch 1, Salazar Cervantes 1, Welters 2, Ka. Coborn 1. Team fouls: LP-GE 13, Park Rapids 10. Rebounds: Park Rapids 33 (Michaelson 14, P. Johnson 5, Ke. Coborn 5, J. Johnson 4, Steffel 3, Ka. Coborn 2). Assists: Park Rapids 19 (Ke. Coborn 12, Ka. Coborn 2, Kinkel 1, Steffel 1, P. Johnson 1, Michaelson 1, J. Johnson 1). Steals: Park Rapids 31 (Ke. Coborn 7, Michaelson 6, P. Johnson 5, Ka. Coborn 5, Kinkel 3, J. Johnson 3, Steffel 2). Blocked shots: Park Rapids 3 (Michaelson 2, P. Johnson 1). Turnovers: LP-GE 40, Park Rapids 19.
