BRUINS DEFENSE KEYS WIN OVER VALLEY

A great defensive effort led the way for Fargo South as they pulled away from Valley City in the second half and won going away in a 58-35 victory in the Bruin gym on Tuesday night. The game marked the last appearance of three seniors in the Bruins gym, and all three contributed to the win. Senior Joslynn Tharaldson led the Bruins in scoring on a night when the Bruins had great balance, dropping in a team high 13 points. Senior McKenzie Mehlisch led the Bruins with 5 steals on the night, including two that led to layups on the offensive end that really broke the game wide open for South. And senior Jill Anstadt came in off the bench to make a basket each half, including a midrange shot in the first half when the Bruins were really needing a hoop. In the first half the Bruins seemed to be spinning their wheels on offense, thanks in part to a Valley team that did a good job of collapsing inside and also of getting back quickly on defense. When the Hi-Liners tried to take away the inside game though, the Bruins responded from the perimeter. Lindsay Sauvageau hit a three pointer early on, one of 4 for the Bruins on the night. Jenna Lee and Cammi Greenheck also hit from the perimeter to help South build its early lead. What was really impressive for the Bruins though on this night was their defensive effort. South was fortunate to hold Brittni Bruenjes and Jossy Bergan, both averaging over 16 points per game, to just 9 and 6 points respectively. That defensive effort was a huge key in the Bruins win. The Bruins built a small 14-8 lead after one quarter, then slowly extended that lead heading into halftime. Jill Anstadt made her shot, plus McKenzie Mehlisch had a beautiful drive and dish to Joslynn Tharaldson for a baseline jumper and South took a 23-15 lead into halftime. In the second half though is where the Bruins really got things rolling. Five different players scored in the third quarter, and with the Bruins scoring, they were able to get into their full court defensive pressure and caused the Hi-Liners to get out of rhythm on offense. The Bruins got two nice drives to the basket, one each from McKenzie Mehlisch and Cammi Greenheck, and an offensive rebound basket plus a three pointer from Jenna Lee. Julie Hageman came in and made a pair of big baskets, plus Joslynn Tharaldson went to work inside, scoring 6 points in the quarter. After the nice third quarter, the Bruins had built a solid 42-25 lead. That lead continued to grow in the fourth. McKenzie Mehlisch had a steal for a layup, then moments later, had another steal, this time finishing with a beautiful assist to Lindsay Sauvageau, forcing a Valley City timeout, and really putting the game out of reach. South made two more three pointers against the Valley defense in the quarter, and the Bruins cruised to the big win. South put three girls in double figures, led by Tharaldson's 13 points. Lindsay Sauvageau scored 12, and Jenna Lee had 10 points and also grabbed 10 rebounds. With the win, the Bruins improve to 16-1 in the EDC and 16-2 overall. Next action is Thursday night when South travels to West Fargo in the season finale. The Bruins open up East Region play as the #1 seed a week from Thursday which will be at 3:00 PM in the Fargo Civic against the winner of the Shanley/Devils Lake play-in game which will be played in Devils Lake.

See the complete boxscore here

Boxscore:
Fargo South: Mehlisch 3 0-0 6, Hageman 2 2-2 6, Tharaldson 3 7-7 13, Lee 4 1-2 10, Sauvageau 3 4-4 12, Greenheck 2 0-0 4, Anstadt 2 0-0 4, Heyer 1 0-0 3; Totals 20 14-15 58, Three point goals: Lee, Sauvageau 2, Heyer

Valley City: Bergan 2 2-4 6, Burchill 0 1-2 1, Klingenberg 2 1-2 7, Bruenjes 2 5-10 9, Peterson 5 2-2 12; Totals: 11 11-20 35, Three point goals: Klinginberg 2

Fouled out: none; Total Fouls: South 17, VC 13; Rebounds: South 40(Lee 10), VC 23(Bruenjes 11), Steals: South 10(Mehlisch 5), VC 7(Bergan 3), Turnovers: South 15, VC 15; Assists: South 13(Greenheck 3), VC 5(Burchill 2);