By Jacob Heid

STEVENS POINT — Another CWC-South game is in the books for Pacelli and Rosholt girls’ basketball. The two teams faced off against each other on Dec. 8 at Pacelli High School. Defense became a factor late in the first half, allowing Pacelli to extend the lead and win 49-37.

Both teams got out to a slow start offensively. Rosholt brought the pressure by creating takeaways but couldn’t convert them into points early. The first points were scored close to four minutes in, with the Cardinals and Hornets trading buckets for a 3-3 tie. Pacelli lost Amelia Jacoby, the dominant post presence, to three first-half fouls. Kaylin Yenter filled in for her, posting nine points and seven rebounds. The game teeter-tottered until there were roughly seven minutes before halftime. 

That is when junior Casey Vaughan and the Cardinals went on a defensive rampage. Pacelli closed the half on a 12-1 run, taking a 25-14 lead into the locker room. Head coach Dean Borcherding talked afterward about what he saw at that point.

“I think we just finally got out of medium gear and kicked it into high,” he said. We finally got going defensively, and that kind of helped us offensively with a little momentum swing.” 

Vaughan was a big reason for the run. The junior had a handful of steals, finishing with ten on the night. She also had 13 points offensively.  She now has 25 takeaways over her last three games. Pacelli had 23 takeaways in the game, the second most this season for them.

“She (Casey) is just 100 percent effort, 100 percent of the time,” Borcherding explained. “She is a coach’s dream. You only have to tell her once, and she’ll get it.” 

The second half became closer than Borcherding probably wanted. Pacelli opened the second half on a 10-5 run, putting the score at 35-19. Senior Amelia Jacoby’s ability to show herself in the paint, use footwork, and finish became the offense for Pacelli. The Hornets came out of a timeout with 13 minutes remaining and closed the deficit to single digits, 38-30. Trzinski ran the offense smoothly and found teammates inside for easy baskets. It felt like the Cardinals answered everything after that, getting their double-digit lead back and keeping it. Rosholt never folded and fought until the final buzzer.

Pacelli is now 2-0 in the CWC-South, while Rosholt falls to 0-2.