Titan girls get win over West Central, fall to Sioux Center

On Thursday, Jan. 9 the Tea Area High School girls’ basketball team traveled to Hartford to take on West Central. 

The Titans, led by Ellie Clayberg’s 21 points, defeated the Trojans 47-43 to improve to 3-4 on the season. 

“Against West Central they found themselves down late in the fourth quarter and ended the game on a 17-5 run to take the win,” said Titan head coach Taylor Fechner. “This was a big game for them. With many of them playing in some of their first close varsity games, they had to figure out a way to win a close game which can be hard to do. We leaned heavily on our upperclassmen and their composure, hit a few key shots and made some big stops defensively to secure the win. It was one of the more fun games I have been apart of.”

Clayberg hit five three-pointers in the game to help reach the 21 point mark. She also grabbed three rebounds and had one steal. Anna Binde finished with six points, nine rebounds, one assist and two steals. Jaycie Babb finished with five points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Kya Haynes also had five points. She pulled down four rebounds, had one assist and three steals. Emma Lingren provided five points, nine rebounds, two assists and two steals. Both Reese Hammerquist and Sienna Mork finished with two points and Grace Bialas added one point. 

Following their win over West Central, the Titans took on a top Iowa team in Sioux Center at the Sanford Pentagon. 

“Sioux Center was ranked #5 in their class in Iowa.  The girls lead almost the entire first three quarters but ultimately the height got to us where they got a few key offensive rebounds and hit a big three late to take a win,” said Fechner.

Sioux Center took the 49-43 win, despite a strong effort from Tea Area.

For the Titans, Binde led the way with 12 points, four rebounds, three assists and one steal. Lingren finished with eight points, three rebounds, and two steals. Both Clayberg and Haynes finished the night with seven points. Clayberg had three rebounds along with three steals. Haynes had one rebound and one assist. Babb finished with five points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal. Bialas and Mork each had two points in the game. Hammerquist finished with two rebounds and two steals. 

“Two big takeaways from these two games — WC we  found a way to win a game, Sioux Center we now need to learn how to not lose a game,” said Fechner. “So far this season we have seen so much growth from this group and with January being jam packed, we get an opportunity to rebound really quick and get a few more wins under our belt this week.”

The Trans were schedule to take on Sioux Falls Roosevelt on Jan. 14 and will host Sioux Falls Jefferson on Thursday, Jan. 16 in a 7 p.m. match-up. They will be at Aberdeen Central on Saturday, Jan. 18 and in Watertown on Tuesday, Jan. 21.