By By JAMI GRANNELL / Niles Daily Star
MATTAWAN – "We have a lot of work to do," Niles coach Jim Arnold said after suffering a tough loss Tuesday night to host Mattawan, 55-42.
It started off with a tough battle, with a tie score of 10-10 at the end of the first quarter, but for some reason the Niles Vikings just couldn't keep up.
The defense started slipping in the second have which made the score 19-25 at half time. Niles trailed by 11 with only 1:58 left in the fourth quarter.
"We couldn't nail shots when we needed them," Arnold said. "They ran a good zone against us, causing some unnecessary turnovers."
The Vikings were lead by Courtney Teske with a double-double having 11 points and 10 rebounds. Kaitlyn Touhey and Baysia Cox followed with 8 points each.
Lindsay Craig had a tough night fouling out with 1:58 left in the game, but not before contributing seven points and four assists to the ball game.
Nathalie Lund, a new foreign exchange student at Niles this year, added six points and Jenna Grannell came off the bench with two.
Niles will host their first home game on Friday against St. Joe. It will also be the Big 16 West Division opener for both schools.
Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
NILES 42
Alyssa Pingel 0 0-0 0; Lindsay Craig 2 1-2 7; Gabie Ezell 0 0-0 0; Kaitlyn Touhey 3 2-5 8; Nicole Sly 0 0-0 0; Autumn Lucero 0 0-0 0; Nathalie Lund 2 2-2 6; Courtney Teske 5 1-3 11; Jenna Grannell 0 2-2 2; Baysia Cox 2 4-7 8. Totals: 14 12-24 42
MATTAWAN 55
Abigail Krygier 0 0-0 0; Laura Eberhard 0 2-4 2; Alyssa McBride 4 6-6 17; Sara McCarty 2 0-0 5; Nicole Weller 3 1-2 7; Tricia Principe 4 15-17 24; Amanda Klage 0 1-2 1. Totals: 13 25-31 55
Niles 10 9 9 14 – 42
Mattawan 10 15 14 16 – 55
3-point baskets: Lindsay Craig (N) 2, McBride (M) 3, McCarthy, Principle (M)