Fourman breaks school record in rebounds

Saratoga Lady Panther Justine Fourman broke the school’s record in rebounds Saturday against Hanna-Elk Mountain-Medicine Bow (HEM).

Fourman scored 23 points and had 23 rebounds against HEM. Sixteen of the rebounds were defensive rebounds and the rest were on the offense.

The weekend was made sweeter and the girls come home with two wins under their belt, with a 42-35 win against North Park in Walden and a 57-47 win against HEM. The Lady Miners have had a successful season and are ranked No. 1 in the 1A Southeast conference.

Panther’s head coach Scott Bokelman said his team is feeling more confident after the weekend sweep.

Bokelman credited the rebounds against HEM for the win. The Lady Miners are taller than the Lady Panthers and rebounding is key in a win, Bokelman said.

With two more conference games, Bokelman will stick to working on the basics. He is looking for a win against Lusk because that will mean the pig-tail game will be played on the Panther’s home court.

The Lady Panthers sit at No. 4 in the 2A Southeast conference with a 1-5 record. They have a 9-10 overall record. Bokelman would like to see his girls get a double digit in the win category.

Lusk is No. 5, and has not won a conference game this season. Their overall record is 5-14.

Saturday, the Lady Panthers travel to Yoder to go up against the No. 1 seed Southeast. Southeast has not lost a game this season. With a record of 6-0, 2A Southeast, 17-0 overall, the Lady Panthers know they will need to play hard, according to Bokelman.

North Park was a tough game for them, Bokelman said. It was more physical.With the win, Bokelman did see some smiles and that is encouraging.

In the North Park game, Meredith Lincoln was the high scorer for the Panthers with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Fourman scored 13 points and had six rebounds. She also had one steal and two assists.

Haley Soles and Veronica Lincoln both added 4 points to the board, with Mati Love bringing in 3 and Peyten Fisher 2. Soles also grabbed five rebounds for the team.

Against HEM, M. Lincoln had 20 points, four rebounds, four steals and two assists.

Soles scored 6 points while V. Lincoln had 2 and three steals. Love put 5 points on the board with Fisher gaining a point at the line.

“We either play or they’re done,” Bokelman said of the conference games this weekend.

The game against Lusk starts with junior varsity play at 3:30 p.m. If they beat Lusk, the pig-tail game will be played Monday in Saratoga. Bokelman did not have a start time for the pig-tail game.

Saturday, the Lady Panthers travel to Yoder and begin junior varsity play at 1 p.m.