MILLER – Aberdeen Roncalli exploded for 29 third-quarter points to fuel a 56-43 non-conference girls’ basketball win over Miller Friday night.
The ninth-rated Cavaliers trailed 22-18 at the half before hitting from all angles in a 29-13 third-quarter burst that produced a 12-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.
“Offensively, I thought we did a lot of really good things. I thought we got out and scored in transition quite a bit in the second half,” said Roncalli coach Derek Larson. “We didn’t do anything different, other than they kind of heard about it at halftime and they changed their attitude a little bit the second half.”
Larson was not pleased with his team’s sluggish play in the opening half, which saw the Cavaliers trail for most of the opening 16 minutes.
“We did not play with a lot energy in the first half. We turned the ball over too many times in the half court against their trap,” Larson said. “We had too many turnovers and just didn’t play with a lot of energy. I thought we kind of went through the motions a little bit first half. We played with a lot more energy the second half.”
The game was tied at 26-26 before Roncalli scored 11 unanswered points to grab the momentum. Rylee Voeller made back-to-back 3-pointers help spark the surge.
Roncalli, which has struggled at times from the charity stripe, was spot on against the Rustlers, making 13-of-14 attempts from the free-throw line.
“There’s not like an answer to it,” Larson said. “I thought we stepped up and shot them with confidence.”
Larson was also pleased with the performance of the players off the bench, who contributed a dozen points.
“I thought our bench did a pretty phenomenal job stepping in, especially the second half,” Larson said. “When we subbed out we didn’t lose a step, so I thought that was nice.”
Voeller finished with 14 points to lead the Cavaliers. Elyana Roach, starting for the injured Gabby Thomas, scored 12.
Miller received a dozen points each from Kate Lichty and Paige Werdel.
Roncalli, 13-4 on the year, faces Highmore-Harrold at 2 this afternoon at the Warner Classic. The Pirates had a win over Sanborn Central-Woonsocket Friday night.
“Both teams have a short turnaround. It’s going to be a good basketball game,” Larson said. “We played them last year too there and ended up shooting it well. Hopefully we can shoot it well (Saturday).”
ABERDEEN RONCALLI (13-4): Elyana Roach 4 2-2 12, Morgan Helms 1 1-2 4, Claire Crawford 3 0-0 8, Karsyn Davis 1 4-4 6, Rylee Voeller 4 4-4 14, Jillian Ellwein 2 0-0 4, Kadince Glynn 1 0-0 2, Olivia Dix 1 2-2 4, Grace Cogley 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 13-14 56.
MILLER (13-5): Gracen Werdel 2 0-0 4, Kate Lichty 4 3-4 12, Paige Werdel 5 2-2 12, Jolie Palmer 1 0-0 2, Madelyn Saienga 3 0-0 7, Hailey Werdel 1 0-0 3, Jayce Pugh 1 0-0 3, Kaihlyn Anderberg 0 0-2 0. Totals 17 5-8 43.
Aberdeen Roncalli 11 18 47 56
Miller 12 22 35 43
3-point field goals – Roach 2, Helms, Crawford 2, Voeller 2; Lichty, Saienga, H. Werdel, Pugh. Total fouls – Aberdeen Roncalli 9; Miller 15.
