Mustangs stomp C-G Bears

I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.

Feb. 26, 1999

By Devlyn Brooks

The second-ranked Kelliher-Northome Mustangs outlasted a three-point shooting barrage by third-rated Clearbrook-Gonvick to win 55-46 in Sub-Section 29A girls' playoff action Thursday at BSU Gymnasium.

The K-N Mustangs, which looked sluggish and out of sync in the first half, took only a 26-22 lead into halftime despite outplaying the Bears for the better part of the entire half. In fact, the C-G Bears were held to only seven points in the first quarter.

But the Bears made the best of their free throw opportunities in the second quarter, nailing 7-of-10, to cut the K-N lead to four points, 26-22, by halftime.

Because of their foul trouble in the second, the Mustangs were shuffling players in almost continuously, and the rhythm they exhibited in the first quarter vanished.

The Bears exploited that, outscoring them 15-11 in the period.

In the third period, the Mustangs came out immediately pressing, and the strategy worked.

The young Bears -- who do not have a senior on the team -- were forced to bring the ball up court through a lot of traffic, and their inexperience showed.

Not only did they throw a handful of bad passes causing turnovers, but when they accomplished getting the ball across the timeline the pressure disrupted their offense. They managed only seven points once again in the third period.

The Mustangs were led by junior Anna Mostad-Jensen, who scored 12 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the field. Incredibly, Mostad-Jensen shot 0-for-8 in the first, only to shoot perfectly in the second.

Clearbrook-Gonvick was led by Molly Eck, who similarly had an uninspired first half and an incredible second. She scored 12, sinking 4-of-7 from behind the three-point line.

Overall, the Bears shot 7-of-12 from the trifecta -- compared to the Mustang's 3-of-7 -- keeping the Bears in the game in the second half.

The Mustangs improved to 10-12 overall with the victory and moved on to face No. 1-seeded Lake of the Woods in the Sub-Section 29 championship.

The Bears ended the season with a 7-12 record.