Craft leads Lady Dogs to first win of season
The positive momentum keeps building for the Whitefish girls basketball team.
The Lady Bulldogs put their first notch in the win column on Thursday with a 44-38 victory at Eureka. The win snapped a 12-game losing skid that dated back to Jan. 29 of last season when they defeated Libby.
Whitefish (1-7, 0-2) led Eureka by 15 going into the fourth quarter, but let the Class B Lions whittled the margin to two points with less than two minutes to play.
Senior Simone Craft hit six big time free throws down the stretch to seal the win. Craft finished with 18 points to lead all scorers, along with seven rebounds and a couple assists.
“She really carried us as a team leader,” Whitefish coach Clint Peters said. “I challenged her and she stepped up into that senior leadership role.”
Peters said the two young teams matched up well.
“Eureka is feisty,” he said, “but our girls battled.”
The Dogs tight 2-3 zone kept Eureka out of the paint and forced them to shoot jumpers.
“All of their shots were 15 feet out,” Peters said.
The coach praised sophomore guard Katie Fyall’s energy.
“She was all over the place, grabbing steals and putting in layups off fastbreaks,” Peters said. “She was the player we know she can be.”
Whitefish’s 44-point outing was their best of the season and follows a 43-point effort in a loss at Frenchtown.
Peters said his team seems to be building some momentum.
“Every night is a battle for us,” he said. “To finally come out with a win is huge.”
“It helps the girls feel what it is like to win. They get a little taste for it and it pushes them harder to go get more.”
Whitefish plays at Class B Florence this weekend. They play at Plains on Jan. 17.
Whitefish 9 14 11 10 — 44
Eureka 5 4 12 17 — 38
WHITEFISH — Allie Schulz 2, Katie Fyall 13, Simone Craft 18, Anna Peterson 3, Makenna Benbrook 4, Allix Larsen 2, Victoria Buls 2.
EUREKA — Whitney Williams 6, Caty Gongerio 2, Charity Parsons 1, Evynn Anderson 9, Amanda Peterson 10, Elliott Peterson 4, Stacy Cooper 2, Ashlen Pacella 4.