Wisconsin Heights girls drop a pair

The effort was terrific. The results fell just short. Wisconsin Heights’ girls basketball team gave visiting Marshall and host New Glarus all they could handle last week. In the end, though, the Vanguards couldn’t steal a win. Marshall edged the Vanguards, 42-35, on Jan. 17, then New Glarus nipped Heights, 53-48, on Jan. 18. The Vanguards are now 7-6 overall, but 0-4 in the Capitol South Conference. “Marshall and New Glarus were games I thought we should have won,” Heights coach Tyler Fuchs said. “Unfortunately, we weren’t able to play well enough to get the job done.  “In both games, our offense went stagnant for long stretches due to making poor decisions in the paint and not being strong with the ball. This allowed Marshall and New Glarus to go on runs and establish double digit leads which we couldn’t overcome.” • Marshall 42, Wisconsin Heights 35 — Sonja Severson had 14 points and six rebounds, but it wasn’t enough for the Vanguards. R.J. Kalscheur added 12 points and six rebounds, while Lydia Crowe had six points, five rebounds and two assists. Marshall led, 25-18, at halftime. Heights allowed just 10 points in the first 16 minutes of the second half, but couldn’t narrow the gap and had to foul down the stretch. “Our defense played a lot better in the second half,” Fuchs said.  “We started fouling to extend the game. However, the deficit proved to be too much and we weren’t able to close the gap enough to give us a chance at the end.” • New Glarus 53, Wisconsin Heights 48 — Jocelyn Brabender and R.J. Kalscheur both had 17 points in a losing effort for the Vanguards. Kalscheur also had eight rebounds, two steals and two blocks, while Brabender had five rebounds, two steals and a block. Sonja Severson added 11 points, nine rebounds and two steals. The game was tied, 21-21, at halftime and 31-all with 10 minutes to go. But the Glarner Knights went on a run and built an 11-point lead that proved too much for Heights to overcome. “New Glarus increased their defensive pressure which caused us to turn the ball over, leading to easy buckets for them,” Fuchs said. “We started forcing shots up instead of working the ball around to get a better look. The girls fought hard to cut the deficit to five at the end of the game. I’m proud of their effort to battle until the end of the game.”