On Monday, January 15, the Red Bud Lady Musketeers hosted the Wood River Lady
Oilers. The Musketeers were determined to add another win to their record. In order to do this,
they knew that they must play with intensity and composure.
In the first quarter, Red Bud came out strong immediately. The Musketeers pressured
the Oilers right off the bat, which gave them a quick lead. Sophie Richards fought hard from the
post and knocked in three, two-point shots. Sophia Koesterer drove to the basket twice and
made two shots. She was also fouled on a shot and went one for two from the free throw line.
MaKenzie Harbaugh sank a three-pointer to add another three points to the board. Hope
Guebert and Laura Juelfs also contributed with two points. Red Bud was leading 18-6 at the end
of the quarter.
The Lady Musketeers put the Lady Oilers down under in the second quarter. Red Bud
was knocking in shots left and right and outscored Wood River twenty-two to ten. Koesterer was
unstoppable in the second quarter. She sank four, three-pointers and made two, two-point shots
as well. Harbaugh also sank a three-pointer and put up a two-point shot after getting an
offensive rebound. Alyssa Cowell was fouled on a shot and went one for two from the free throw
line as well. Going into halftime, Red Bud was ahead 40-16.
In the third quarter, Red Bud added another fourteen points to their score. However,
Wood River did as well. The Musketeers knew that they could not slack off during this quarter
and they needed to continue to play strong defense. Koesterer came out and sank another two,
three-pointers putting six points on the scoreboard. Richards continued to battle at the post and
made four, two-point shots. This put the score at 54-30.
Although the Musketeers were unable to knock in many shots in the fourth quarter, their
defense made up for it. They held the Lady Oilers to six points. Amber Stengel made a
two-point shot from the wing. Alyssa Heller put in a two-pointer from the post to add another two
points to the board. Guebert also was fouled on a shot and went one for two from the free throw
line. Red Bud captured the victory against Wood River with a final score of 59-36.
On Thursday, January 18, the Red Bud Lady Musketeers traveled to Marissa to take on
the Lady Meteors. The Musketeers knew they needed to play a fast tempo game with
confidence to gain the conference win.
In the first quarter, Red Bud played strong defense, but were unable to knock in many
shots. Koesterer sank a three-point shot to start the game off. Richards also fought hard at the
post and was fouled on a shot. She went one for two from the free throw line. At the end of the
quarter, Red Bud was down 4-11.
The Lady Musketeers picked up their game in the second quarter and added ten points
to their score. Richards and Heller each posted up strong and both made a two-point shot.
Harbaugh drove to the basket several times, drawing multiple fouls. She went five for six from
the free throw line. Koesterer was fouled on a shot as well and made one of two free throws.
Red Bud was falling 14-18 going into halftime.
In the third quarter, Red Bud came out fired up and ready to take the lead. They
continued to fight hard and not put their heads down. Harbaugh sank a three-pointer. She also
cut to the basket twice to add another four points to the scoreboard. Richards continued to
battle at the post and made two, two-point shots. She was also fouled on a shot and went two
for two from the free throw line. Juelfs and Koesterer were both fouled as well and both made
one of two free throws. Red Bud was leading 29-22 at the end of the quarter.
The Musketeers knew that they would have to play a good fourth quarter to win the
game. Making free throws were key to winning the game. Red Bud scored a majority of their
points in the fourth quarter on free throws. Harbaugh made a two-point shot and went three for
four from the free throw line. Koesterer and Richards were both fouled twice and went three for
four from the free throw line as well. Juelfs was also fouled several times and went two for six
from the free throw line. Heller also went one for three from the free throw line. Red Bud gained
the conference victory against Marissa with a final score of 43-40.
Red Bud is scheduled to host Steeleville on Wednesday, January 24.