HUMBOLDT — The Humboldt Lady Cubs posted their first victory under Coach Rob Myer after handily defeating the West Elk Patriots 54-31.
After both teams unloading an opening salvo in the first quarter, with Humboldt ahead 12-10, the Lady Cubs took control with their defense in the second, third and fourth while holding West Elk to single digits.
“We got tighter. We’ve been working hard at playing closer to players and making them uncomfortable,” said senior guard Skylar Hottenstein, who scored a team-leading 16 points. “It was nice. We could control the game. I shot the ball and didn’t overthink.”
Myer attributed the Lady Cubs’ first win to a change in plans. After opening the season with blowout losses to Girard and most recently Chanute, Myer said a few adjustments provided an immediate payoff.
“We saw how we needed to be playing. The girls bought into it tonight and that’s what made the difference,” Myer said. “It was by far our defense. We put pressure on them and they turned the ball over and we got some fast breaks. We ran some things we had been preaching to them all season long.”
As Humboldt clamped down on defense, its offense was just warming up. Although Hottenstein’s final tally was 10 more than her nearest teammate, it was not a bug in Humboldt offense but a feature.
The Lady Cubs had seven contributors on offense. Senior forward Laney Hull netted 7 points, followed by sophomore guard Addison Drake and Jada Ellis with 6 points each.
With so many weapons moving at once, West Elk was simply out-gunned.
“A lot of things came together tonight for us, but the main thing is we want to stay healthy,” Myer said. “The girls know what to do. We’re very experienced. The younger girls are picking everything up quickly. We’re fine.”
