If Tuesday’s varsity girls’ basketball game between Edwardsburg and Paw Paw would have been based solely on free throw shooting, the Eddies would have been in trouble.

Edwardsburg went 11-for-32 at the charity stripe, something head coach Jon Pobuda admitted has been a constant battle.

Thankfully, free throws weren’t the deciding factor and solid field shooting allowed the Lady Eddies to stay undefeated with a 55-38 Wolverine Conference win at home. They improve to 3-0 on the season.
“We’re working on those free throws,” Pobuda said. “The biggest problem right now is that we have to get more confidence in our ability to make the shots.”

Edwardsburg wasn’t at the line once during the first quarter of play. Buckets from starters Chloe Bartz, Kaitlyn Zarycki and Brayden Curtis, and a 3-point basket from Savannah Dixon allowed Edwardsburg to take a 9-5 lead at the end of the period.
Paw Paw opened the second with a 3-pointer from Hannah Warner, and the Redskins quickly tied the game at 11 with additional points from Mackenzie Newell and Madison Ball. The lead toggled back and forth the entire period, and foul-trouble from Paw Paw put the Eddies on the line 12 times in the quarter. That’s where Edwardsburg struggled the most, only hitting 3-for-12 at the line. Both teams entered half time tied at 20.

“We could have had a good lead going into the second half, but we missed the shots,” Pobuda said. “I told them (at halftime) to just focus on the little things — make the easy lay-ups, have the confidence and be where we are supposed to be defensively.”

The Eddies’ defensive game came alive during the third quarter as it didn’t allow the Redskins a good look at a bucket until the 1:56 mark and held them to just four points in the period. Edwardsburg added 19 points to their total, which included two 3-pointers from Dixon. The Lady Eddies entered the final period of play with a 39-24 advantage.

Ball, Paw Paw’s senior center, fouled out early in the fourth by way of technical. She ended the night the team’s high-scorer with 11 points. Edwardsburg’s Noelle Kraus, Alexa Markel and Erzsebet Widman helped extend the lead for the Eddies halfway through the quarter.

The last three minutes of play were spent at the free throw line, with the exception of one bucket from Paw Paw’s Brooklyn Walker. Edwardsburg had 16 free shots in the fourth, but were only able to sink six points. Paw Paw went 7-for-10.

The Redskins ended the night with 23 team fouls, and the Eddies had 22.

Paw Paw head coach Gary Mitchell said his team just had a bad night.

“We were not in our game tonight whatsoever” Mitchell said. “We did not have a good showing. From turnovers to foul. We just weren’t into it at all. These girls are much better than their showing tonight.”

The Redskins are now 3-2 for the season.
Dixon led the way for the Lady Eddies with 15 points. Zarycki added 11 and Markel and Samatha Ekanayake each added eight.

Edwardsburg is back in action tonight when it travels to Three Rivers for another conference game. Tip off is scheduled for 6 p.m.

In junior varsity action, Edwardsburg grabbed a 53-36 win over Paw Paw.

Claire Bartz had a game-high 17 points for the Eddies. Claire Alby added 16 and Abbey Krugh had 12. For the Redskins, Emily Nelson had 12 points and Kayla Brown ended with 10.

 

EDWARDSBURG 55, PAW PAW 38

At Edwardsburg

PAW PAW 38

Kiarra Herson 2, Hannah Warner 3, Madison Ball 11, Kate Thompson 2, Anna Vavra 0, Brooke VanTilburg 5, Brooklyn Walker 3, Mackenzie Newell 8, Megan Huggett 3, Lydis Rogers 1. TOTALS: 8 2 24-16 38.

EDWARDSBURG 55

Erzsebet Widman 4, Michacla Ritschard 0, Alexa Markel 8, Kaitlyn Zarycki 11, Katie Kanaby 0, Savannah Dixon 15, Chloe Bartz 4, Noelle Kraus 2, Brayden Curtis 3, Samantha Ekanayake 8. TOTALS: 18 3 32-11 55.

 

Edwardsburg           9          20       39       55

Paw Paw                    5          20       24       38

3-point baskets: Edwardsburg 7 (Dixon 3) Paw Paw 2 (VanTilburg 1, Warner 1). Total fouls: Edwardsburg 22, Paw Paw 23. Fouled out: Ball (Paw Paw). Varsity records: Edwardsburg 3-0, Paw Paw 3-2.