Second-half slowdown stops Spartan ladies

Though the Spartans (1-6) only trailed by nine at the half Wednesday at home to Johnson County Community College (10-0), the Cavaliers scored 12 unanswered to start the second half and break away.

Johnson County went on to dominate the matchup, winning 77-47.

“Coming into today, we wanted to compete,” Southwestern coach Darien Wingate said. “We’re going against the number two team in the country. We needed to come out here with some energy and effort.”

The Spartans played tough in the first quarter, trailing only four points as Gracie Hearon knocked down three 3-pointers in the first half.

Wingate said in the first half the team was executing offensively and defensively.

“We were running some of our plays, making some shots as well as getting some stops.” he said. “They are a big team, a physical team, they score a lot. In the second half, we came out a little flat.”

Leading scoring for the Spartans was Brooklyn Hadl. She had 11 points, three steals, two rebounds and two assists.

Shyla Moore and Gabby Dwanyen each added 10 points.

The team’s only returner, Cassidy Nelson, led the team with five rebounds and added seven points.

The Spartans struggled in shooting, making only 28% of shots. The Cavaliers hit on 41%.

Free throws were a bright spot as the Spartans hit 71.4% versus the Cavaliers’ 53.3%.

Another spot they excelled over Johnson County was in turnovers. The Cavaliers turned the ball over 21 times compared to only 12 by the Spartans.

“Our biggest thing is trying not to be our biggest enemy,” Wingate said. “We are still young so we made mistakes down the stretch. I do think that we’re growing and we’re a better team now than we were the first time we played them.”

The first time the two teams faced off Nov. 11, Johnson County doubled SWCC, 90-45.

Leading the Cavaliers in scoring was Saige Grampsas with 19. Maizen Williams added 14.

Jazzy Klinge had a game-high 15 rebounds while Amani Henry had 10 for the Cavs.

Outscored 40-19 in the second half, Wingate said the team needs to put a full 40 minutes together.

“You can’t be a team that’s a tale of two halves. If we can start a game like that, we have to learn how to finish it,” he said. “That comes with them being young. I think we were a little satisfied being only down nine at half. We’ve got to be able to put two halves together.”

The Spartans return to action Saturday at Marshalltown Community College.

Their next home games are Monday, Nov. 11 against Grand View University JV and Wednesday, Nov. 13 against Northeast Community College.