Brainerd overcomes ragged start to beat Apollo
GIRLS' BASKETBALL
In a show of heart and determination, the Brainerd Warriors overcame a 16-2 deficit and went on to defeat the St. Cloud Apollo Eagles 61-52 during a Central Lakes Conference matchup Tuesday.
"We took a timeout, gave the kids some stern advice, they took it to heart and had the game tied 30-all at halftime," Warriors coach Carl Hendrickson said.
In her return to the starting lineup after three games in a reserve role, Alex Sauer led the Warriors with 21 points. She helped overcome a 10-2 run by the Eagles to open the second half.
"After getting down eight (in the second half) the kids never quit on us and we got good production from the bench, " Hendrickson said.
Alex Sauer
Emily Thesing contributed 12 points and KB Capers 10 for Brainerd. Tess Rahto led the Warriors with 16 rebounds and Kylie Stanfield had eight assists.
"The kids kept playing and playing, giving us the lead with about four minutes to go and we held onto it," Hendrickson said.
St. Cloud Apollo 30 22 - 52
Brainerd 30 31 - 61
ST. CLOUD APOLLO
Haley Asfeld 3, Moriah Novacinski 4, Alison Gray 24, Courtney Lynch 18, Andezu Orionzi 3. FG 20-48 (42 percent), FT 3-12 (25 percent), 3-point baskets: 9 (Gray 6, Lynch 3).
BRAINERD
Alex Sauer 21, Emilee Branum 7, Kylie Stanfield 8, Tess Rahto 3, Emily Thesing 12, KB Capers 10. FG 23-47 (percent), FT 10-17 (percent), 3-point baskets: 5 (Sauer 3, Thesing 2). Conference: 9-3. Overall: 10-7. Next: vs. Rocori at Cold Spring 1:30 p.m. Saturday.