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Rangers make it 5 straight wins
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Wednesday, 12 December 2007
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Glen Strandberg
Sports Editor
During the 2006-07 girls basketball season, Forest Lake picked up its fifth win on Jan. 16 — the 15th game on its schedule. This winter the Rangers are a perfect five-for-five, with the fifth victory coming last Friday, Dec. 7.
“We are extremely excited about how the girls are always giving us effort and finding ways to win basketball games,” head coach Jen Wagner said. “It is a great feeling to see the girls be rewarded with five wins. However, it raises the bar and is showing everyone how special this season can be.”
Forest Lake went on the road Dec. 4 and dropped Anoka, 62-43, and then came home to start the weekend with a 45-41 victory over Mounds View.
What’s starting to emerge for the Rangers is a trifecta of juniors who are making life difficult on the competition.
As a team, Wagner’s squad is outscoring its opponents by an average of 13 points per game. Combined, Gina Lange and Annie Berner are close to 12 1/2 feet of talent, who total 30 points and 22 rebounds, while 5’6” guard Molly Steele gets her 10-point average through hustle and a 47.6 shooting percentage from three-point range.
The victory over Anoka was fairly efficient, with the Rangers plowing ahead for a 14-point advantage at halftime, before building to the 62-43 final. The point differential could have been larger, but Forest Lake was just 22 of 40 from the free throw line.
On Friday night, the winless Mustangs gave the undefeated Rangers a much better effort, as Forest Lake was only up by five after the first half, and then ended with the 45-41 win.
Steele led the team with 15 points, while Lange had 14 and Berner finished with 10 points.
The free throw percentage was vastly improved in this contest, but Wagner sees other ways for her girls to upgrade.
“As a team, we still have some frustrations to work through,” she shared. “We have to take better care of the basketball; we have way too many turnovers.
“Also, on Friday night against Mounds View we were very stagnant on offense — we have to move the basketball better, don’t stand on offense and work a balanced inside/outside game. With that being said, we still are 5-0.”
The push for the sixth straight win continued on Tuesday night against Hastings (1-2) and then a road game at Cretin-Derham Hall (2-2) on Friday night.
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