A slow start littered with turnovers was too much for the Iola Fillies to overcome in their season opener against St. Marys Colgan on Monday night.
The Panthers suffocating defense held Iola to a single point in the first period, and comfortably finished off the Fillies 35-21 by the end of things.
We were just rattled from the start, head coach Becky Carlson said. Their defense controlled us. Colgan has great defense, and probably the best we have seen all season. We just couldnt handle their pressure very well.
The Fillies started with three consecutive turnovers while Colgan accounted for the first four points of the contest. The Panthers full-court press was too much for the Filly ball handlers to digest. Becca Sprague went 1 of 2 from the foul line to give Iola its only points of the period. The Fillies were outpaced 8-1 in the first period.
Matters failed to improve in the second for the Fillies, as the turnovers continued to pile on. Elysia Kunkler scored the first Filly field goal in the early goings of the second, but Iola would convert only once more from the field in the first half.
At the break, Iola trailed 22-10. Despite only converting two field goals in the first half, the Fillies were within a possession away of the game being in single digits. Carlson highlighted that despite the sloppiness on the offensive end, the Fillies still showcased their grit defensively.
I felt like our defense was great, and we did a great job rebounding tonight, Carlson said. We always play great defense, but I have felt our rebounding has been a little bit suspect. But tonight, we did a better job rebounding.
After Gabby Richards opened the scoring in the second half, Kunkler followed with two easy dueces to shorten the deficit to seven. Iola trailed 26-19 heading onto the final period, but never was able to inch closer.
Carlson attempted to pair different lineups on the court, but the turnovers continued to pile on in the fourth period. After coming within single digits in the third, the Fillies were held scoreless in the fourth until Josie Plumlee added two points from the charity stripe with 1:30 left to play.
The Panthers calmly finished off the Fillies 35-21.
The effort is there, but obviously the execution wasnt there tonight, Carlson said. It was a good learning game for us, and obviously we are not going to let this one define us.
Iola will be back in action at home on Friday for Pioneer League action against Osawatomie scheduled for 6 p.m.
Box Score
Iola (1-9-9-2 21) (pts): Bycroft 2, Plumlee 2, Holloway 2, Kunkler 6, Taylor 1, Sprague 3, Sell 2, Richards 3.
Colgan (8-13-5-9 35) (pts): Crossland 30, Imhof 3, Root 10, Goetting 2, Smith 2, Yagmour 3.
