By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
After finishing third at the Sterling Invitational, the Southeast of Saline girl’s basketball team resumed their regular season with a win in Belleville, knocking off Republic County 47-29.
With this win, the Lady Trojans advance to 10-2, and 3-1 in NCAA play while the Lady Buffs fall to 0-13.
Things looked worrisome for SES offensively in the early goings of this game as the Lady Trojans led just 7-6 at the end of the first quarter, but a few key switches allowed Southeast to flip a switch and outscore Republic County 20-6 in the second quarter to pull away.
“We kept telling them to shoot the ball,” SES head coach Shauna Smith said. “We knew that eventually it was going to go in and when we moved Maddie Harris to the high post and she knocked down a big shot a lot of weight was lifted off of her shoulders. Scoring didn’t come easy for us but I think it was better than it was at Sterling.”
While it took Southeast’s offense some time to get rolling, defensively the Lady Trojans looked as sharp as ever, turning the Buffs over 27 times and allowing six or fewer points in each of the first three quarters.
“Our goal was to play good defense without reaching,” Smith said. “When we got that ball pressure and stepped into passing lanes we got a lot of turnovers. Good things happen when we stay disciplined with that.”
That defensive prowess was just a continuation of the Southeast’s excellence this season on that side of the ball, as the Lady Trojans have allowed just one opponent to reach the 50 mark all season long.
“We’ve been playing well defensively,” she said. “Now we have to get better offensively and that’s something we’re capable of doing. We have some good shooters but we’re missing a lot of layups and two-foot shots.”
One consistent bright spot offensively has been Lexi Jacobson, who once again led the Lady Trojans in scoring with 17 points tonight to lead all scorers.
SES will continue their quest to claim yet another league title on Friday when the Lady Trojans travel to Ellsworth to battle the Bearcats.
“We watched Ellsworth play Sacred Heart and they’re much improved,” Smith said. “They play about ten deep and we’ll buckle down defensively but we have to put the ball in the bucket.”
For continuing coverage of Lady Trojan hoops down the home stretch, stay tuned to the Salina Post.