Comets Run with #1 Owls and Make Statement
The Hillcrest Comets are showing there’s a third team in the conference that will contend for a state berth this year. In Tuesday nights contest, Hancock’s first game of the year, Hillcrest nearly upset the top 10 rankings. The Hancock Owls are ranked #1, and Underwood is ranked #4 in Class-A state girls’ basketball. Hillcrest held the lead, and had momentum down the stretch, making a statement to the Owls and the rest of the state that the Comets will contend this year.
Hancock leaped to a dominant lead. A full-court press almost broke the back of the Comets in the first 8 minutes of the game. Hillcrest quickly fell to a 15-point deficit. But the Comets continued to battle back, making minor adjustments throughout the game that had Hancock move from a smothering attack to a stabilizing defense.
"Hancock came out with an aggressive press and our girls struggled to take care of the ball," noted Hillcrest Head Coach Hannah Clark. But Clark implemented a simple press-break that saw Hillcrest move up the court quickly and eventually pushed the Owls out of the press into a half-court zone defense.
Hancock appeared to tire mid-way through the first half as they pulled into their zone, forced to make quick transitions from offense to defense as Hillcrest failed to tire. While the Owls stand nearly a head taller than every Comet, Hillcrest found soft spots in the zone, with Lizzy Olstad, Ruby Peterson, and Maddie Ballweg going hard into the paint to challenge the Owls, who found themselves out of position as the Comets crashed the boards. “Ella was a monster on the boards, grabbing 21 rebounds and finishing with a double-double," noted Coach Clark. The Comets were dominant on the glass, with Madi Foss coming in strong behind Ella with five rebounds.
“Once we settled down, we were able to find our rhythm on offense," Coach Clark highlighted. "We were down ten at the half and came back to take the lead midway through the second half."
Hillcrest slowly soared to their second-half lead behind the impressive performance from seventh-grader Elsa Retzlaff, who shot a commanding 5-of-8 from behind the arc, leading Hillcrest with 20 points. “Elsa hit some really big shots for us, and Lizzy had a very nice offensive game as well,” reported Coach Clark.
Elsa finished the game with 20 points, hitting two big threes near the end of the game that kept the Comets within striking distance. But the Comets ran out of time, with Hancock going to the line a handful of times in the closing minutes to keep the game out of reach, leading the Owls to a 71-66 victory.
Ella Knutson finished the game with 14 points and 21 rebounds. Lizzy Olstad contributed 13, and Ruby Peterson added 9 points. Madi foss chipped in 2 points, five rebounds, and four assists in a complete game providing important support for the team. Stella Moline came off the bench to chip in 5 points, and Maddie Ballweg earned 3 behind a strong defensive game.
“It was a great night of basketball,” Coach Clark said, beaming from the challenge her girls were giving Hancock, the 2022 state champion. “I was so proud of how hard the girls competed.”
Hillcrest brings their 1-1 record to Evansville Thursday night in a Little Eight Conference match against Brandon-Evansville.